


Writing Prompt Wednesday

by TedOrAlive2



Category: RWBY
Genre: One Shot Collection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2018-11-15 11:52:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 48
Words: 61,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11230386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TedOrAlive2/pseuds/TedOrAlive2
Summary: This is a record of all of the short stories I've written for r/RWBY's Writing Prompt Wednesday, or at least all of the ones I think are worth remembering. So it'll be a series of one-shots, mostly humorous but with a few serious stories, starting off with Yang picking up a hitchhiker on the way to Mistral.





	1. Hitchhiker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "On the way to Mistral, Yang gives a ride to a hitchhiker."

Yang sped down the Animan road, nearing Mistral and her sister with every moment. There were so many things she had to say. Logically, she knew that Ruby would immediately forgive her for shutting down, probably already had. But she was still haunted by the image of finding Ruby, hugging her tight enough to make up for all the months away, and not being hugged back.

Yang shook her head. That was ridiculous. Ruby had never been mad, she'd done everything that she could to support Yang after the Fall. The instant she could stand after waking up from her coma, she'd gone to her sister's room to make sure she was OK. Even after Yang had said all of those harsh things, the last words out of Ruby's mouth had still been "I love you."

Yang was still thinking about that day when she noticed the man walking slowly by the side of the road. He wasn't dressed like a traveler. Well, that wasn't entirely true, he was dressed like someone who hadn't expected to be traveling but found himself traveling anyways. His clothes were worn and dirty, and he looked about as tired as anyone Yang had ever seen. But the craziest part was that Yang recognized him.

She slowed Bumblebee to a stop right beside the man and gave him her biggest, most dazzling smile. She didn't have to say anything, he'd noticed her. He was staring at her with a look that said "I thought nothing would surprise me anymore. I was wrong."

After several seconds of staring, the man spoke.

"This is my life now. Things were going well, then you showed up and they stopped going well. Then you showed up again, and they got even worse. And just when I thought things had gotten as bad as they possibly could, here you are again."

"Aw come on, Junior, I thought we made up last time. Tell you what, I'll give you a lift to Mistral in exchange for a Strawberry Sunrise."

"Do I look like I can make you a Strawberry Sunrise right now?" Junior practically screamed.

"Fine, but you owe me one," Yang answered with a chuckle. "Hop on."

For a moment, it looked like Junior wasn't going to. But finally he sighed and got on the motorcycle, carefully putting his arms around Yang in a way that was unlikely to trigger any ball-crushing.

"So how'd you end up all the way out here?" asked Yang as Bumblebee accelerated away.

Junior practically collapsed against her. Yang didn't have to see him to imagine the defeated look on his face.

"You know my club was on the opposite side of town from Beacon. That dragon had to have been thinking 'I'm going to go destroy Beacon, just as soon as I'm done fucking with Junior.' The buildings on either side of my club? Totally fine. It was just me."

"Yeah, that dragon was a dick," agreed Yang. "Don't worry, my sister froze it on top of Beacon tower and it hasn't moved yet."

Junior didn't know what to say to that, so he just continued his story.

"Turns out my insurance doesn't cover ancient Grimm abominations any better than it covers crazy, blonde Huntresses-in-training. I decided I needed a fresh start. I was going to go to Vacuo, but the twins insisted that Mistral was the place to make it big. So the three of us are driving across Anima when all of a sudden bandits show up. I get out my weapon, and I'm waiting for the twins to spring into action, when they decide to join the fucking bandits!"

"NO!" cried Yang, doing everything she could to avoid bursting into laughter.

"So now I've got no car, no money, no supplies, and I'm all alone in the middle of Anima. I'd been wandering around for two days before you showed up. At this point I don't even know what I'm going to do when I get to Mistral."

"Hey, don't worry about it," said Yang reassuringly. "You'll figure something out. I'll bet you're going to get back on your feet with a new bar, and it'll be a huge success!"

"You mean that?" asked Junior.

"Absolutely," said Yang, but then a wicked grin spread over her face. " _Bar_ ring another disaster."

Junior let go of Yang and practically launched himself off the back of Bumblebee. He barely even grunted as he fell to the dusty, unpaved road.

Yang stopped the motorcycle and considered going back to check on him. But then she said aloud:

"You know what? He made his choice, now he has to accept the _pun_ ishment."

Yang hit the accelerator and sped back on her way to Mistral.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was the first time I wrote for Writing Prompt Wednesday, and I wanted to have fun with it. You'll find that most of the stories I came up with were funny rather than serious. I was (still am) spending a lot of time on a very serious fic about the Great War, so I used WPW as a chance for some humor. Actually, even some of the more serious shorts I wrote came from funny ideas that turned more serious as I expanded on them.
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it! Look forward to more.


	2. Love at First Sight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Rewrite a first on-screen meeting between two characters as if it was love at first sight."

As Blake ran through the door to the next car, the massive White Fang man picked himself up from the ground and raised his chainsaw. Weiss couldn't see his face behind the white and red mask, but his voice suggested that he was enjoying this immensely.

"Finally, I get to kiss a Schnee," the Faunus man said.

Weiss blinked in surprise. "What did you say?"

"I said I'm going to kill you," the man said as if it were obvious.

"I'm pretty sure you said kiss," countered Weiss. Had she misheard him? No, he had definitely said kiss.

"That's ridiculous," insisted the White Fang man, but Weiss could hear doubt in his voice. "I would never kiss a Schnee. No matter how pretty you are."

"Um, thank you?" said Weiss hesitantly. What was he talking about?

"Don't thank me!" yelled the Faunus. "Your family has abused my people for generations, and I'm going to..." He sighed and lowered his weapon. "I don't want to kill someone as pretty as you."

Weiss's mouth fell open. _What the actual fuck?_

"You're Weiss, right?" asked the White Fang man. "The middle child? We had heard you were attending Beacon."

"Yeah, that's me," admitted Weiss. She considered lying to him, but that might make him angry and start the fight up again. She really had no idea what to do. She might be able to take him in a fight, but if she could avoid one, that would be smarter. "What's your name?"

"Around here, people call me Banesaw," answered the Faunus. Then he saw the look of disgust on Weiss's face. "But, uh, my real name is Blanco."

"OK," began Weiss. "Um, what now, Blanco?"

"I don't suppose you'd be willing to walk away?" asked the White Fang member.

"You're trying to blow up part of Vale," replied Weiss. "So no, I'm not going to walk away."

"We're not just running a train into the city," corrected Blanco. "We're going to make a tunnel that Grimm can get through. But yeah, I can see you not wanting to let that happen."

"My friend already got past and is trying to stop the train," Weiss said. "I'm going to go help her. Either you try to stop me, or you don't."

Blanco sighed. He stepped aside and sat down on one of the crates that filled the train car, his chainsaw resting in his lap.

"Thank you," said Weiss, and she hurried after Blake. She was still confused by the whole situation, but she had more pressing concerns.

She found Blake standing over Torchwick, Gambol Shroud's blade pointed at his throat. The Faunus girl glanced at her as the door opened.

"You beat him?"

"Kind of," answered Weiss. "We'll talk about it later. For now, we need to stop this train."

Blake nodded and delivered a kick to Torchwick's head, knocking him unconscious. The two girls hurried to the front car of the train, only to find that the brakes, indeed all of the controls, had been destroyed.

"What do you think?" asked Weiss. "Is there anything we can do?"

"We're out of time," answered Blake, pointing out the front window of the train. The end of the tracks was fast approaching, with a solid concrete wall beyond it.

"Ruby's on top of the train!" cried Weiss. "She won't survive a crash like that!"

"Then we'd better hurry," answered Blake. The two sped to the top of the car to warn their leader of the danger.

In another car, the White Fang lieutenant known as Banesaw braced himself for impact as he'd been instructed. He could jump off the train, but that would leave him alone and surrounded by Grimm. Instead, he simply readied himself for the crash. He'd survive it, or he wouldn't. That was the extent of his plan.

_Was it worth it?_ Blanco shrugged, and tried to push the thought away. He had resigned himself to the possibility of dying on this mission, but now he found himself hoping at least that Weiss made it out alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I saw this prompt, my first thought was "Finally I get to kiss a Schnee" and I just went from there. It ended up being quite a bit more serious than I expected. Turns out I don't get to decide where my stories go, they do that for themselves.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. Jaune Kills Cinder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "In a surprising twist, Jaune actually manages to strike down and kill Cinder after she killed Amber and absorbed the Fall Maiden's power."

Golden light flowed from Amber into Cinder. Fire danced around the dark-haired woman, and her eyes began to glow. Jaune rushed towards her without hesitating, sword raised.

"Stay back!" called Ozpin, but it was too late. With a casual flick of the wrist, Cinder sent Jaune crashing into the wall beside her, leaving cracks in the column he had struck. Pyrrha pounded on the glass of her pod, screaming his name.

Cinder took a step towards Ozpin, a smug smile on her face. She stopped when an enormous groaning sound filled the hall.

Cinder looked up to see the column that she had thrown Jaune into was collapsing on top of her. She raised a hand and summoned the maiden's power to knock the massive piece of stone away from her. It landed behind her with a earth-shaking crash.

Before the dust had finished settling, Jaune was on his feet and charging Cinder again. She snarled at his insolence and slapped him aside with the full power of the Fall Maiden. Jaune went sailing into the opposite wall, crashing straight through a column.

Cinder shook her head. "Now that that's out of the way..." She turned her gaze to Ozpin who was staring in disbelief. She smirked until she realized that he wasn't staring at her.

Cinder followed the headmaster's gaze in time to see the column that Jaune had crashed through was now falling on top of her. She raised her hand and unleashed a blast of fire, melting the stone just in time to save herself from being crushed. As the molten rock splashed around her, Cinder's annoyed expression finally turned to rage.

"ANYTHING ELSE?" she howled. She waited a moment, and when there was no answer, she took another step towards Ozpin.

That was when the part of the ceiling that the two columns had supported gave way, sending hundreds of tons of rock raining down on Cinder. She was buried before she ever had a chance to react. A golden light emerged from the pile of rubble before dissipating into the air.

Pyrrha finally freed herself from the pod and ran past Ozpin, who was staring at the rubble in disbelief. She ran to Jaune's side, who was still picking himself up from where Cinder had knocked him. After checking to make sure he was alright, she spoke.

"I can't believe how lucky-"

"It wasn't luck," interrupted Jaune. "I did that on purpose."

Pyrrha opened her mouth to speak, but Jaune cut her off again.

"Next you'll say 'That's impossible, Jaune, you'd have to be able to see the future.'"

"That's impossible, Jaune, you'd have to be able to see the future," said Pyrrha. Then she gasped in surprise. She and Ozpin stared at Jaune for a long time, mouths hanging open.

_His Semblance... It can't be._

Finally, they recovered enough to speak again.

"What happened to the Maiden's power?" asked Pyrrha.

"Her last thoughts were of Jaune, or possibly of me. The power went to seek out a random host." He looked from one student to the other. "That was absolutely amazing, Jaune. But with the Maiden's power potentially on the other side of Remnant, we're going to have our work cut out for us defending the school."

Pyrrha turned her head from Ozpin to Jaune, who looked about as good as someone who had been hurled through two stone columns (three actually, but the other had been hours ago) possibly could.

"You're right, Professor, but somehow I can't bring myself to be worried right now." In spite of himself, Ozpin nodded in agreement.

The professor and his two students began heading back towards the elevator, feeling like even the Grimm dragon that waited for them outside was nothing they weren't ready for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had several ideas for this one, but most of them just felt like generic "Jaune is OP" fics, or else made Cinder look like a complete joke. I didn't want to go either of those directions, so I focused on the image of Jaune getting thrown into a wall and went from there. I thought about having it be a genuine accident, but I was too tempted by the Jojo reference. And after all, Joseph was the king of bullshit, so Jaune might have been bluffing about planning what happened to Cinder...
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Blake's Clones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Blake's clones won't go away."

"Up top!" called Sun as he and Blake watched the Sea Dragon dissolve into black smoke.

Blake stared at the monkey Faunus' huge grin. _He followed me. I can't believe he followed me._ Anger overcame her, and she slapped him across the face.

Sun recoiled, more surprised than hurt. Blake was about to chew him out for stalking her all the way from Beacon, when a strangely familiar voice cut her off.

"Hey! Don't touch him."

Blake and Sun both turned, and saw… Blake. Another Blake was standing a few feet away, staring daggers into the Blake that had just slapped Sun. For his part, the monkey Faunus was swiveling his head back and forth between the two girls, unsure what to make of this.

_Is that one of my clones? I've never heard them talk before._

"You should be ashamed of yourself," yelled the clone. The voice was Blake's, but the tone was one she had never used before. It sounded almost… flirty? "How could you hurt such a handsome boy?"

_What?_

"Uh, Blake, what's going on?" asked Sun.

Before he could get an answer, another Blake stepped out from behind a rock and addressed the group.

"It's not the first time she's let her emotions get the better of her. How could you abandon Yang like that? She needed you! As soon as I deal with you, I'm going back to Vale."

"Why?" asked the first clone. "Everything I need is right here." She winked at Sun.

The second clone scoffed. "This disgusting little stalker? No, Yang is my true love. And once I kill you both and take my place as the real Blake, I'm going back to Vale." The clone gave a sinister smile. "I'll nurse Yang back to health… and then take her to bed."

"Seriously, what the hell is going on?" asked Sun.

"Isn't it obvious?" asked the first clone. "I'm going to kill these two and become the real Blake. Then we can be together." She smiled at him.

"No!" yelled a third clone, appearing from behind another rock. "I'm the real Blake! And once I destroy all of you, I'm going back to Vale… for Ruby!"

"Ruby?" cried the other three Blakes in unison.

"Yes!" answered the newcomer. "She was still unconscious when you left her! I'm going back to Vale to make sure she's alright… and to get some Ru-booty."

"Ruby is probably fine," said another clone, revealing itself. "It's Jaune that needs us! He just lost Pyrrha. He needs a shoulder to cry on… and some lips to make out with."

"Forget Vale!" yelled yet another clone. "We should be in Atlas, looking for Weiss. Her father practically kidnapped her and you're all going to allow that?"

"Wait a minute!" interrupted the real Blake. "I didn't even make this many clones when we were fighting the Grimm!"

"Oh yeah, that was my bad," admitted the Bumbleby clone. "I thought that if _I_ made some clones they would either fade away like normal or side with me." She shrugged. "I was wrong."

"So…" began the Eclipse clone. "I guess we fight to the death now?"

"Not before I say my piece!" yelled another clone standing on top of the rock.

The other Blakes sighed. "Who do you want to be with?" asked the Monochrome clone.

"The only person I've ever actually been in a relationship with, Adam!" replied the newcomer.

Blake and her five clones drew their weapons in unison and shot the Tauradonna clone in the face. The clone faded into nothing like Blake's clones always did when struck.

_They can still only take one hit!_

But before Blake could take advantage of this realization, the other clones were on her. They surrounded her and began to attack.

"Sun, help!" called Blake.

"I can't tell which one is the real you!" cried Sun desperately.

Blake groaned. "Fine, then stay back."

The fight was difficult. The clones were just as fast and skilled as the real Blake, and she couldn't use her Semblance for fear of creating more enemies. But they could each only take a single hit, while Blake still had a bit of her Aura left to protect her.

And while the clones prioritized attacking the real Blake, their teamwork was far from perfect. The Bumbleby clone in particular took out the Knightshade clone and the Ladybug clone on her own before Blake defeated her.

In the end, despite having her Aura broken by the Eclipse clone, the canon Blake was victorious. She turned to Sun who had been watching the fight in amazement.

"You're the real thing?" he asked.

"Do you see any corpses?" asked Blake.

Sun sighed in relief. "Good. I like you a lot better-" His eyes widened. "Look out!"

Before Blake could react, she felt a sharp pain in her chest. She looked down to see Gambol Shroud's blade piercing her through the sternum. A voice identical to her own whispered in her ear.

"Sunny Bees is OT3."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a ton of fun with this one. It only got better when I realized I was pitting canon Blake against half a dozen shipper versions of Blake. But I had to end it on a laugh, so canon lost in the end.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	5. Mother's Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "What Yang does for Mother's Day."

Yang revved Bumblebee's engine and began to speed away from her house on Patch. But after just a minute of driving, she remembered what day it was.

Without hesitating, she turned the motorcycle off the path and into the woods. It wasn't entirely safe driving here, but Yang was a skilled enough rider to manage. She had never been known for her caution anyways.

She arrived at the cliff in minutes, and slowly dismounted the bike, walking over to stand before the grave.

"Hi... Summer."

She hesitated. She had stopped calling Summer "Mom" after finding out the truth of her parentage. She rarely visited her step-mother's grave and almost never spoke before it. It wasn't that she didn't miss Summer, it was just that she didn't believe the woman was listening like Ruby did. But at that moment it felt right to speak.

"I..." She thought of a few ways to finish the sentence, but it depended on what she believed Summer knew or could see from the afterlife. Considering Yang barely believed in one, it was a tricky question. She eventually decided to assume Summer knew everything because that way she didn't have to repeat all of the bad things that had happened.

"I wish you had been there when I was recovering. I remember when I was little and I got hurt, and you always made me feel better. Dad did his best, but he didn't really understand how I was feeling." Yang paused.

"Oh, but I'm feeling better now! I mean it, I feel like I'm going to be OK. I'm still a bit scared to go back out there. I don't know what'll happen if I run into... him again. But I'm leaving anyways because... because Ruby did. She's still fighting, and I can't let her do it alone. I know that she's scared too, but if she can stay strong, then so can I."

Yang smiled.

"You know, I never would have guessed if Dad didn't tell me. I could see that you and Ruby had a special bond, but you never made me feel left out." She started to tear up a bit. "I could always feel how much you loved me. I never would have known you weren't my real mom... I think when I was little I wanted to find Raven because I thought I could get back what I had with you."

She wiped her eyes and sighed.

"I know now that I can't. Raven isn't you, and everything I know about her tells me she wouldn't be happy to see me. I still want to meet her someday, but I'm not letting that search consume me. After all, I might not remember my mother, but I still got to have the best mom in the world. I love you so much."

Yang wiped away tears with her one biological hand. She turned away from the grave and got back on her motorcycle. She gunned the engines and sped off towards the docks, towards Mistral, towards her sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was my first time doing something completely serious for WPW, and it was a topic I had been thinking about for a while. Summer is easily my favorite character that we've never met (not sure if that sounds like a meaningful title, but it matters to me), and I was pretty pissed when she didn't get so much as a mention in Volume 4. As someone who's pretty close with his mother, I definitely think Summer's relationship with Ruby and Yang deserves more attention. So here's what I came up with.
> 
> Thank's for reading!


	6. Raven's Rule

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "How the rest of ST_Q lost their 'everyone gets saved once' from Raven."

**Qrow**

Raven broke into the clearing where she and her twin had made camp and found exactly what she'd expected. He was surrounded by Beowolves, and they were overwhelming him. Even as she cut down the first one in front of her, four of the Grimm attacked Qrow at once, and his Aura shattered. He collapsed beneath the weight of the Grimm, struggling in vain against them.

Raven sighed and returned her katana to its sheath. With the flick of a switch, she changed out the blade for a different one, and slowly drew the sword again.

It was over in an instant. The Grimm were dead and her brother was mostly unharmed. Raven stood over his prone form and sneered.

"You were crying." It wasn't a question.

Qrow didn't look her in the eye when he answered. "Yeah, maybe." He knew he couldn't lie to her.

"Weak," snarled Raven. She walked away from her brother to see what could be salvaged of their camp.

Qrow scrambled to his feet as quickly as he could. "Our parents are dead!" he screamed. "And I'm weak for mourning them?"

Raven whirled on her brother and slapped him across the face. He shrank back from her wrath.

"Tears bring Grimm!" Raven shouted. "We'll be dead too if you can't get your emotions under control!" He wouldn't look her in the eye. She calmed her voice before continuing. "I'll fight alongside you whenever you need it. I'll watch your back, and you'll watch mine. But if you ever need to be saved like this again, brother, I'm going to let you die."

Raven went back to fixing up the camp, letting her words sink in. A part of her wanted to forgive Qrow and take back her promise. He was only twelve after all. But she was no older, and she had never shown such weakness as this. So this would be her rule now. No one was worth saving twice.

**Tai**

Two more Ursae closed in on Raven and were cut down just as quickly as the last seven. She cast a quick glance around the cliff side forest where the other three members of Team STRQ were fighting off the Grimm. They were outnumbered, but so far had managed to hold their own.

That was until Tai tripped. Two Boarbatusks had charged him at once, and he'd been forced to take a step back when he blocked them. His foot caught on a root, and he'd tumbled over backwards off of the cliff's edge, the two Grimm falling with him.

Raven reacted immediately, transforming into her namesake and swooping after him. She tucked her wings in and dove, reaching him before he'd fallen more than a few meters. Transforming back into a human, she reached out and grabbed his hand. At the same time, she dug her katana into the cliff face, slowing and eventually stopping their fall.

"Whew!" shouted Tai. "That was a close one. Thanks!" He smiled that gorgeous smile at Raven, and for a moment she almost didn't mind having to save him.

Almost.

"Don't expect such kindness again." With that, she slowly pulled them back to the top of the cliff, where Summer and Qrow helped them up. The Grimm were finished by then.

As Raven strode away from the edge, Qrow approached her.

"That was me," he muttered. "My Semblance made him trip."

"So?"

"So don't blame it on him."

Raven turned on her brother, and he flinched away as if expecting a slap.

"I've lived under the pall of your Semblance since you unlocked your Aura ten years ago. How many times have I tripped _off the edge of a cliff?_ " Qrow didn't answer. "That's what I thought." She kept walking, leaving her team to catch up. As always.

**Summer**

Tai rested a hand on the wall next to Raven's head. He leaned over her, smiling that megawatt smile of his.

"So? What are you thinking?"

Though she would never admit it, that sultry tone in his voice made Raven want to melt. She was about to grab him by the collar, drag him into their dorm room, and not let him out until she was finished with him, but then she spotted Summer approaching from the other end of the hall. The diminutive team leader stopped when she saw them there, faces mere inches apart, and a hurt look crossed her face. She controlled it quickly, but Raven had seen.

"Not tonight, Tai. I have some work to catch up on."

Tai backed off. He was visibly surprised and obviously disappointed, but he would never argue when a lady said no. He let himself into the dorm room while Raven slowly walked over to Summer.

The cloaked girl stared in shock. She was about to speak when Raven cut her off.

"I saved each of their lives once, and I don't intend to do it again. You I'm saving from heartbreak, or at least giving you a chance to do it yourself."

"What?" whispered Summer.

"I'm giving you until tomorrow to make Tai yours. He's right in there, alone and frustrated."

"But…but he likes you…not me."

"This is the only chance I'm ever going to give you," answered Raven evenly. "If you waste it, that's on you." She walked past her team leader, unable to keep a smirk off her face.

Raven stayed out of the dorm the whole night. She managed to keep Qrow away as well, happily distracted by some fake IDs and a trip to Vale. If she was going to do this for Summer, she wasn't going to half-ass it.

She and her brother returned to Beacon for breakfast in the cafeteria the next morning. Raven watched the door, and eventually Summer entered the room, alone and unwilling to look her teammate in the face. Raven knew that she had won.

She smirked as she imagined how the night had gone in the dorm room. She thought of Summer and Tai, each sitting silently on their own beds. Her team leader must have spent the night warring with her shyness and fear of rejection, hating herself more with each second wasted. Finally, Tai would have fallen asleep, likely dreaming indecent dreams about Raven, and Summer's heart would have shattered with the realization that she had given up her only chance.

Then there was the even sweeter possibility that Summer had worked up to courage to confess her love to Tai, only to be rejected, but Raven knew this was far less likely.

Raven didn't think of herself as cruel, and she didn't generally enjoy watching her teammate suffer. But this had been a matter of pride. Bad enough that Summer had been chosen as team leader over Raven, then the girl had the _gall_ to beat her in a sparring match two days ago. So she offered Summer a chance to win Tai's heart that she knew the girl would be too timid to take. Raven had established her superiority in a way that a simple rematch couldn't undo.

Tai was hers now, and she planned to take full advantage of the handsome boy who was completely smitten with her. They had almost two years left at Beacon, and in spite of herself Raven was considering staying with him even after graduation. And having her fun with him would be all the more satisfying knowing that Summer would be watching with envy the whole time.

And now they'd each used up their chance. Raven would fight alongside them for the rest of their time at Beacon, watching their backs while they watched hers. But she wouldn't go out of her way to save them, not even Tai. Raven owed them nothing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I wrote this, I honestly felt like I might have gone a bit too far. My feelings on Raven are mixed. I definitely don't think she's a good person and don't buy into any of the "She didn't want to leave Yang" theories. But I don't necessarily think she's a complete monster either. Feel free to let me know if you thought I made Raven a bit too despicable.
> 
> And if you're wondering, no, Raven didn't even consider the possibility that Tai would pick Summer over her.
> 
> Thanks for reading! This is the last one in my backlog. From here on in it'll be one a week, and only if I feel like what I wrote is worth saving. If you want to see more, stop by r/RWBY on Wednesday. There are a whole bunch of talented writers who throw themselves at every prompt we're given. I have yet to see a week that didn't provide at least one good laugh or else some serious feels.


	7. Team CEMT

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Cinder, Mercury, Emerald, and Adam as if they were a simple first year Beacon team alongside RWBY and JNPR.

Cinder broke through the trees at top speed and came out into a large clearing. Up ahead was the gorge that divided the Emerald Forest from the cliff that Beacon sat upon. A stone bridge spanned the chasm and several towers rose from it. Her objective was just ahead!

But between her and the cliff, a battle raged between eight of her fellow classmates and two of the largest Grimm that Cinder had ever seen. The Death Stalker was the size of a house, and the Nevermore's feathers were bigger than a person. Still, her peers seemed to be holding their own, even the less-than-impressive blond boy who had hit on her earlier.

Taking only a second to notice all of this, Cinder turned back to the trees she had come from. Her new partner, Adam, was close behind her with Emerald and Mercury not far off. If the chess pieces were anything to go by, the constantly bickering pair would be the other two members of their team. Cinder didn't know any of them, but they seemed capable enough.

Adam in particular impressed her, having torn through several Beowolves with speed that even she would have trouble matching. She believed that he would make a fine partner for the next four years, though they weren't exactly in sync with each other yet. While fighting some Grimm, the Faunus had stepped in the way of one of her blasts of fire. But even then he proved himself, somehow absorbing the flames with his sword.

Her musings were interrupted by their pursuer crashing out of the forest and rearing up over the four teens. Another contender for the largest Grimm Cinder had ever seen, the King Taijitu's mouth was large enough to swallow a person whole. Its black head had apparently been lost at some point in the past, but the white head had only grown stronger for it. Its scales were armored to the point that gunshots from Adam, Emerald, and Mercury's weapons had all been ineffective. Even Cinder's Dust-imbued arrows had done little more than annoy the creature.

Cinder stared up at the creature, assessing her situation. If they tried to retreat any farther, they'd run right into the Death Stalker. However, the team was together now, and they had room to maneuver. When the four of them brought their considerable skills to bear, the Grimm would surely be defeated quickly.

This belief was challenged when the King Taijitu struck. Its head snapped towards Mercury like a bolt of lightning. Cinder raised her bow, knowing she'd be too slow to help him.

However, the boy proved capable of saving himself. He contorted his body out of the way of the strike and kicked at the head as it passed: a perfectly executed reversal.

It had no effect. The Grimm was orders of magnitude too large to be knocked away by Mercury's kick. Instead the gray-haired boy was thrown away from it by the force of his own counter and landed in a heap.

Emerald turned and sprayed the creature's face with bullets. The serpentine Grimm turned on her. Emerald squinted her eyes in focus, but then widened them when the King Taijitu lunged at her. She barely managed to avoid being swallowed, instead merely taking a hit to her Aura and being knocked on her back.

Cinder rushed over to the girl, distracting the Grimm with an explosive arrow in its mouth. As the creature reared back, she turned to Emerald.

"What was that?"

"It doesn't work on Grimm!" cried Emerald, panic in her voice.

_Her Semblance doesn't work on Grimm?_

_She DIDN'T KNOW her Semblance doesn't work on Grimm?_

How could that be? Like Adam, Mercury, and Cinder herself, Emerald had already proven herself capable of fighting through lesser Grimm with ease back in the Emerald Forest. Cinder supposed that the girl hadn't needed her Semblance, whatever it was, earlier, but _never_ before? Surely this King Taijitu wasn't the first Grimm she had ever been truly threatened by.

Then a thought came to Cinder's mind. It seemed strange, but it could explain not only Emerald's failure to affect the King Taijitu, but Adam and Mercury's fighting styles as well. It was obvious to anyone watching that all three had skill, but Cinder was beginning to suspect that they were relatively inexperienced against the creatures of Grimm. They were trained to fight _humans_.

If that were true, then Cinder would have to take charge. She was the only one who understood the difference between fighting people with Aura and monsters without it.

The raven-haired girl looked back at where Emerald was picking herself up. She spoke quickly but calmly.

"Aim for its eyes and mouth. That's the only way your weapon will hurt it. Try to keep it corralled."

No sooner had Emerald nodded in acknowledgment then Cinder was rushing over to where Mercury and Adam were trying to hold out against the King Taijitu's lunging bites. Mercury dodged away from the creature after failing once again to redirect it.

"Mercury!" she yelled to him. "An ordinary reversal won't work against something that size, you'd need more force! Try using the guns in your boots!"

Mercury nodded to her, and the next time the snake struck at him he leapt over its bite, firing his boots into the back of its head. The Grimm was knocked downwards and crashed into the ground. Even as it tried to rise, a barrage from Emerald peppered its eyes forcing it to recoil away from the four teens.

Now Cinder turned to Adam. "Your sword can absorb energy?"

"Yeah," he confirmed. "And then unleash it in one attack."

"Then absorb this!" Cinder yelled as she raised her hand and let loose a stream of fire. Adam immediately raised his sword, keeping it half-hidden in the scabbard, and the fire was pulled into the blade. Cinder poured as much power as she could into her partner, knowing that he would need every bit of it to strike down the monster facing them.

The fire stopped only when Cinder was finally spent. Adam sheathed his blade, and his partner noticed that the red details on his mask and clothing were _glowing_.

"Now," she called to Emerald and Mercury. "Bring it to us!"

Emerald fired at the King Taijitu's face, turning it towards Mercury. It lunged at the boy, but he stepped out of the way at the last second. At the same time, he delivered a full power kick ending with a gunshot at the creature's head. Its charge was redirected towards Adam, who was standing ready. The Grimm opened its mouth for a colossal bite, and the Faunus drew his blade.

The whole world seemed to turn red for a moment. The only things that could be seen were Adam and his opponent, now his prey. The King Taijitu dissolved before Adam's cut like dust blown away by the wind.

When the world returned to normal, Cinder smiled. They had won, and a quick glance told her that her classmates had defeated their opponents as well. She had learned that her teammates had their limitations, but she believed that with her help they would be able to overcome those limitations and grow into fine Hunters.

* * *

"Cinder Fall, Emerald Sustrai, Mercury Black, Adam Taurus, the four of you retrieved the black queen pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team Cement, led by Cinder Fall."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one did not immediately inspire me. I thought about doing something that focused on Adam and Blake, but nothing great came to mind. Then I thought about trying to write Cinder's interactions with RWBY and JNPR if she were an ordinary, albeit manipulative, student, but again I didn't have any ideas for particular scenes.
> 
> The one thing that did get me thinking was the idea that these four probably had more experience than the rest of the student body (aside from Pyrrha) combined ... against people. The difference between fighting Grimm and fighting humans is never really brought up in the show, but it's obviously significant, and you can even see some characters having more trouble against one than the other. Ruby can rip through hordes of Grimm like a hot scythe through butter, but the only time she's had that kind of success against humans was with Torchwick's nameless goons. So I decided to focus on the other side of the coin.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	8. Tea Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Somehow I forgot this one when I was uploading my backlog. Well, here it is now. The prompt was "Fox, Blake and Ren have a weekly tea party where they bond over their teams' wild antics when they just want some peace and quiet. One week they have an unexpected visitor."

Blake left Team RWBY's dorm room and found that Ren was outside his own team's room, waiting for her. He greeted her with a smile and a nod, and they headed towards the second-year wing of the dorms. They made their way to the small, secluded lounge and found that Fox was already there with a pot of tea. They left the lights off. Ren was the only one affected by the darkness, and his skills made him perfectly capable of navigating it. The dark was calming, and it made it less likely for anyone to bother them.

As the three students got their tea and sat down, Blake spoke up.

"So Ren, what was that crash we heard from your room last night?"

The ninja sighed. "Every night, Pyrrha and Jaune disappear for a few hours, and when they come back Jaune is sore all over. When they got back last night, Nora decided to share her theory about what they had been doing. Pyrrha did not handle it well."

Blake and Fox stared at him for a second before bursting into laughter. Most times, laughter was the only way to handle their teams' antics. If they tried to stop every bit of craziness, they'd have gone insane by now.

Blake was about to ask for more details, when three pairs of highly acute ears picked up on the sound of running outside the lounge. Someone was in a hurry, and from the clattering sound it seemed it was someone wearing armor. The three students waited for the person to pass by, but instead he ducked into their lounge, slamming the door behind him and leaning against it.

The room was silent for a few seconds, until the sound of more footsteps passed by. When they were gone, Dove Bronzewing flicked the light switch. The Huntsman-in-training nearly jumped out of his skin when he realized that the room was already occupied.

"What the-! What are you guys doing sitting here in the dark?"

"We were just having a little meeting," answered Ren. "And the dark doesn't bother us." His tone made it clear that that was all the explanation Dove was going to receive.

Dove glanced at the three of them, and then shrugged. "Is it alright if I stay here for a little while?"

Blake glared at him. Fox sneered. Even Ren's normally stoic face hardened. None of them had forgotten the way that Team CRDL had made Jaune and Velvet suffer.

"Why would we let you do that?" asked Blake harshly.

"I'm hiding from Cardin," mumbled Dove, glancing at the floor. The other three students were taken aback by that.

"Why?" asked Blake.

"He was planning some stupid prank on Scarlatina. I told him to quit it, that he was being a dumbass. He was going to get Russel and Sky to help him beat me up. It wouldn't be the first time."

Blake and Ren glanced at each other, faces full of uncertainty. Fox was still laser-focused on the newcomer.

"Sit down," ordered the blind boy, gesturing to an empty chair at the table. Dove complied, and Fox offered him a cup of tea.

"Thanks," mumbled Dove, accepting the cup. His face suggested that he didn't like tea, but he sipped it politely. No one spoke for a minute. Finally, Blake broke the silence.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"What, about Cardin?" asked Dove, looking away from the others. "There's not much to say. You all know he's an asshole. There's nothing I can do about it."

"So you just let him do whatever he wants?" asked Fox coldly. "You just sit back and laugh when he picks on people?"

Dove stared at his tea. "I've stood up to him a few times. All I ever accomplished was getting my ass kicked."

"If you had stuck up for Velvet _the first time_ , Coco would have done anything for you," said Fox, his voice still icy. "I don't know how much her threats would have meant, but she'd have tried to protect you. But you didn't, and she'll never let that go." Dove winced slightly. Then Fox's voice softened. "But I'm a bit more forgiving than she is."

Dove glanced up at the other three students. Their faces were open and sympathetic. It wasn't something he saw very often.

"We meet here every week," began Blake. "We talk about how difficult our teammates can be. Your stories will be a little... different, but you can join us if you want." Ren and Fox nodded in agreement.

Dove smiled. It was the most genuine smile he'd ever had since being put on Team CRDL.

"I'd like that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe I forgot about this one, it's an idea I've had for a while. I always figured that there had to be some good in Team CRDL. To quote Guardians of the Galaxy, I don't know if I believe anyone is 100% a dick. But the series never gave any of them a particularly flattering image. So I compromised and made one of them a decent but still flawed person.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	9. This is the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last week we were allowed to choose any prompts from the spreadsheet. I forgot to upload this here until now. This prompt was "So I guess… this is the end."

Midori grabbed a beer from the refrigerator before returning to the couch, spreading out on it with her head resting on a pillow. Even with as little time as she spent here, the tiny cottage half a mile outside of Wind Path was home, and she enjoyed the opportunity to laze around watching TV in her pajamas. It was especially rewarding after more than half a year away on the job.

Well, job might have been a misnomer. Construction worker was a job. Airship pilot was a job. Even Huntress was a job. What she did was something else.

But that didn't matter right now. Right now, all that mattered was that she had a spare evening to enjoy a beer, a comfy couch, and some TV. The Mistral Regional Tournament finals were about to start, and Midori was looking forward to an awesome match. The brown-haired girl with the staff had shown herself to be an amazing Dust user, but she was also a skilled fighter in close combat. Meanwhile the blond boy with the two swords was unbelievably quick for someone still in Sanctum.

Ten minutes later it was over. The girl was no slouch, but the boy was just too fast for her. He'd avoided all of her Dust attacks before closing the gap and beating her down with lightning fast sword strikes. She held out against him for a long time, but in the end she couldn't keep up. Still, it was a good match, one that both fighters could be proud of.

Midori took one last swig of beer before tossing the empty bottle into a trashcan on the other side of the room. She turned off the TV with the remote and was about to settle down to go to sleep when she heard a knock at the door.

_Who could that be?_

Midori rose from the couch and made her way to the front entrance. She drew her pistol from the belt she had draped over a coat rack and opened the door a crack.

A paper bag was sitting on her porch. It was on fire.

Midori threw the door open and raised her empty hand. A wave of intense cold emanated from her palm, extinguishing the fire and freezing the bag. That was when she noticed the foul stench coming from the previously burning bag.

_Who the fuck came all the way out here for a prank like that?_

Midori stepped around the frozen bag and onto the porch, looking around the meadow surrounding her cottage. It was dark, but the prankster couldn't have gotten far between when he or she had knocked on the door and now. Sweeping her gaze from left to right, Midori spotted a tall figure standing fifty yards away holding something in their outstretched right hand.

That was when her porch exploded.

Midori was hurled away from the house, landing on her chest more than a dozen feet from the door. Her whole body hurt, and the explosion had nearly deafened her, not to mention that it shattered her Aura. She had a headache that likely meant she'd taken some shrapnel to the skull. She tried to move and felt a searing pain in her right leg. She glanced at the appendage to see a long nail embedded in her calf.

Midori realized that someone had used a bag of flaming shit to make her lower her guard. Thinking she was up against a childish prankster, she hadn't been ready for a remote-detonated bomb full of nails. The thought that she'd been so easily deceived hurt almost as much as her leg.

She glanced up at her attacker, who was now walking calmly towards her. He, it was visibly a he now, was tall and thin and wore a long trench coat that was opened to reveal his scarred chest. He had bladed contraptions mounted on both of his wrists.

Midori should have been helpless before him. Her Aura was broken, her weapon had been lost in the explosion, she couldn't put weight on her right leg, and she felt sluggish from the headache. But she still had tools left to defend herself.

Her eyes began to glow with a golden light, and she raised her right hand towards her attacker. A blast of fire more powerful than the military's best flamethrowers shot from her palm to engulf the man, but he leapt out of the way with incredible speed. Midori's eyes widened and she unleashed a bolt of lightning from her fingertips. Unbelievably, the man twisted out of the way of that too and continued his advance towards her, now at an angle that was difficult to see from her prone position.

Midori struggled to her feet, putting most of her weight on her left leg. She raised both her hands and prepared to summon a torrent of fire to incinerate her attacker. But before she could, he pointed both of his arms at her at a downward angle. The weapons on his arms lit up with muzzle flashes, and Midori screamed as bullets tore through both of her knees.

She nearly collapsed forward, but the man stepped in and caught her by the shoulders, holding her upright. She met his violet eyes for a moment before feeling a jab in her stomach. She looked down to see a scorpion's tail embedded in her abdomen. She dimly imagined that she could feel the venom coursing through her body. She looked back up at the man's face to find him smiling like a maniac. Then he pulled back his right arm and punched her in the face, sending her crashing to the ground.

"So I guess… this is the end," panted Midori. She had nothing left.

"Oh no, my dear," replied her attacker jovially. "Fret not, you will not die tonight. The poison is just to keep you docile; I have the antidote right here in case it starts to kill you. The Queen wants you alive."

"In that case," she whispered. "It's definitely the end."

She was beaten. With as much pain as she was in, there was no way that she could break his Aura and defeat him before he knocked her unconscious. But there was still one thing she could do.

Midori called on her power, and her chest bucked upwards as the blood in her pulmonary vein froze, rupturing the vessel and piercing her heart. Her assailant ran to her side, but it was too late to do anything.

_Oh right, I need to think of a girl when I die._

Midori struggled to remember a young woman who was worthy of the maiden's power, but she was dying too quickly. All she could think of was the fight she had just seen on TV.

_What was that girl's name? Oh yeah… Amber._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured an open-ended prompt deserves an unexpected story. So this is what I came up with.


	10. William Shakespeare's RWBY

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I chose another one from the spreadsheet last week. This prompt was "RWBY as written by Shakespeare." I hope this isn't too cringy for you all, I don't claim to be half as good as Shakespeare.

_Salem glides into the room towards her place at the head of the table. The others rise as soon as she enters, but she gestures for them to sit and they do._

**Salem:**  
Watts…  
Do you find malignance necessary  
Towards young Cinder still pained by injury?

**Watts:**  
I meant no offense to you I can assure.  
But Your Grace knows I am not fond of failure.

**Salem:**  
Then there is no need to provoke her so.  
For what failure you mock I do not know.  
It is by Cinder's hand my will is done.  
For now Beacon lies in oblivion,  
Cinder has become the Maiden of Fall,  
And last, that task most important of all,  
That wretched worm, Ozpin, my hated foe  
Now lies dead from Cinder's wrathful arrow.  
Your own accomplishments pale next to her.  
Tell me to what failure do you refer?

**Watts:  
** Her defeat by the girl with the silver eyes.

**Hazel:**  
Indeed, for knowing our past this loss implies  
A mortal weakness Cinder has yet to shed.  
By my hands have silver eyes been rendered dead,  
And yet by a novice was her defeat wrought.  
How can this disaster be?

**Watts:**  
He speaks my thought.  
For though she wields the Maiden's unfettered might  
She challenged that silver girl and lost outright.

**Salem:**  
It is because she held the Maiden's power  
That she tasted defeat that fateful hour.  
Though Cinder's might assures our victory,  
Its crippling weakness brought her injury.  
So as her treatment leaves her occupied,  
She must, for now, remain here at my side.  
Doctor Watts shall act in her stead and fly  
To Mistral to meet with our hidden spy.

**Watts:  
** Very good.

**Salem:**  
Tyrian, you shall continue your quest.  
To find the Spring Maiden, I send my best.

**Tyrian:  
** Gladly.

**Salem:**  
And Hazel, you shall represent our gang  
Before the high leader of the White Fang.  
Adam Taurus has arranged this meeting.  
Every doubt I had in him proved fleeting.  
His loyalty does honor to his name.  
Ensure Sienna Khan still feels the same.

**Hazel:  
** As you wish.

_Cinder gestures to Emerald, who leans in to hear her words. She then faces Salem._

**Salem:**  
You are among friends, dear child; be not meek.  
We would know Cinder's words, so you shall speak.

**Emerald:**  
She wants to know… what about the girl?

**Watts:  
** The girl? Cinder can deal with her alone.

**Salem:**  
Enough. I will not leave her on her own.  
Tyrian, your hunt for Spring must delay;  
A more immediate task comes your way.  
With all your skills so eager and violent,  
Bring me the girl who left Cinder silent.

**Tyrian:**  
Though you say capture when I wish to kill,  
I exist but to do my Lady's will.

**Salem:**

Beacon is through, its wardens prove craven,  
And now our dark gaze falls upon Haven.

_Tyrian turns aside to Cinder._

**Tyrian:**

As vengeance for you, my dearest ally,  
To match your loss, I'll take one silver eye.

_Tyrian laughs maniacally_


	11. Team STRQ's Yearbook

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this one was "RWBY finds old yearbooks of Beacon while cleaning Tai's attic."

Weiss, Blake, and Yang were sitting around in the living room of the Xiao Long cottage. It was the long weekend just before the start of the Vytal Festival Tournament, and Ruby and Yang had convinced their partners to spend it on Patch. Weiss, of course, had said that they should be training or studying up on their opponents, and Blake was rarely interested in traveling more than necessary, but in the end both were swayed. The monochromatic pair had to admit that they had been curious about the place where the sisters grew up, not to mention what their father was like.

The three girls sat in a somewhat awkward silence after their leader's sudden disappearance. She had insisted that she would be back in a minute, but it was now approaching five. Frantic movement could be heard from the attic.

"Do you have any idea what she's doing?" Weiss asked.

"Not really," answered Yang.

"It sounds like she's looking for something," Blake put in.

"And I found it!" cried Ruby, appearing in a cloud of rose petals at that very moment. In her hands was a large leather-bound book that still had a fair amount of dust clinging to it. The team leader hastily brushed it off and set it on the coffee table in the middle of the room. The front of the book was emblazoned with the words "Beacon Memories" in gold print.

"A yearbook?" asked Weiss.

"Yeah!" answered Ruby excitedly. "It's from the year our parents graduated. I thought of it when you mentioned our yearbook photos."

Yang chuckled. Mentioned was a bit of an oversimplification. Weiss had been using Ruby's pose in the team photo they had taken last week as evidence of their leader being 'a complete and utter child.' When the diminutive girl then blasted out of the room, Yang had worried that she was running from Weiss' criticism, but Ruby's hurried excuse and the noise from the attic had suggested otherwise. Now they had an explanation for her sudden disappearance.

"Our dad showed this to us once before," explained Yang. "But that was ages ago. It'll be cool to see it again now that we've actually been to Beacon."

Blake moved to sit closer to the book and opened its front cover. On the first page was a photo of Beacon's courtyard, looking much the same as it did now. She was about to keep going when Ruby appeared beside her and began tearing through the book, searching for something. Blake recoiled from the rose-colored storm of movement, but her face soon worked its way into a smile.

"Here!" cheered Ruby, displaying the page she had found. On it was a team photo of four fourth-year students. Glancing at it, Blake and Weiss were immediately able to recognize a younger Taiyang Xiao Long. The other young man in the photo was not someone they had seen before, but they guessed that he might be the famous Uncle Qrow. As for the two women, one resembled Yang but with black hair and red eyes, while the other could have been Ruby with a white cloak. It wasn't hard to guess that they were Raven Branwen and Summer Rose. The caption beneath the photo labelled them as Team STRQ.

"There they are," sighed Yang. "Dad doesn't keep very many photos of the four of them together, but this is one of my favorites."

Weiss and Blake could see why. It was a good photo. The four teammates stood together with Summer in the middle. Raven and Tai were on her left, close to her even while holding hands with each other. Qrow was on the other side, slightly more distant but still seeming to lend all of his support to the others. The team leader practically glowed in their presence, her smile radiant and her silver eyes glittering.

"Yeah, it's nice," agreed Ruby. "Only thing that would make it better is if they had their weapons."

Weiss rolled her eyes before turning to look at the reverse page. On it was another team of fourth-years, this one all-female. The photo was labelled Team BRWN. Weiss realized that they looked every bit as close and as happy as Team STRQ did, but without knowing anything about them she felt none of the same emotion that she did looking at her partner's family. That was the way with yearbooks; the people you knew seemed to have a wealth of stories behind every photo while the strangers may as well have been featureless shadows.

"I wonder if there's anyone else in here we know," said Blake.

Weiss blinked at the comment that seemed to run parallel to her own thoughts. "Who else would there be?"

"I don't know," replied the Faunus. "One of the professors maybe."

Ruby looked like she was about to go tearing through the book again when Weiss cut her off. "I'm not sure. I thought I saw the date on the spine; this was nineteen years ago, right?"

Yang nodded in confirmation. She knew her parents had wasted little time after graduation before procreating. Yang thought they had done a pretty good job of it, if she did say so herself.

"So I guess Goodwitch and Peach are too young to be in here, and Port is probably too old," said Blake.

"I heard he was a TA my dad's first year," Yang added. "So he definitely would have graduated by this point."

"Maybe he was already teaching," suggested Ruby, turning towards the back where the faculty photos were.

Weiss shook her head. "No, he spent ten years as an independent Huntsman after finishing at Beacon. You'd know that if you paid attention in class."

Ruby was about to try to come up with some retort or excuse when she reached the faculty section of the yearbook and her hand came to rest on a very familiar face. All four girls noticed and turned to examine the photograph of Headmaster Ozpin.

"He looks the same," breathed Blake.

"Yeah, weird," agreed Yang.

Team RWBY stared at the picture of their headmaster for a moment longer before a thought occurred to Blake.

"What about Oobleck? He's about the right age."

The other three girls considered for a moment, and then Ruby turned back to the start of the team photos and began hurriedly flipping through them.

After several seconds of searching they found him among the second-years. Bartholomew Oobleck looked even scrawnier as a teenager than he did as an adult, but the respect that Team RWBY had gained for the doctor in Mountain Glen stopped them from judging too harshly. Then Ruby noticed the caption beneath the photo.

"Team ORNN? What kind of name is that?" The other three girls followed their leader's gaze to the bottom of the page.

"I think it's supposed to be 'orange,'" suggested Blake.

"Then why doesn't it have a G in it?" protested Ruby.

"Because none of the team members' names started with a G," answered Weiss. "Ozpin did the best he could with their initials, and they got ORNN."

"Just look at the other page," added Yang. "Team WASH, that's not even almost a color."

"Let me see that," said Weiss. She read the names of the four students and tried to come up with a better team name from their initials. After a minute, she realized that WASH was the best they could do.

At that moment, the Huntresses-in-training gained a sudden appreciation of how difficult it had to be to make a decent team name out of the initials of the four members. Spelling 'ruby' with a W suddenly didn't seem so egregious.

The girls continued flipping through the book, finding more team names that failed to inspire awe. Some were like Team ORNN, just one letter away from being a perfect name. Others, like Team GREN, really should have worked, but somehow didn't feel right without a fifth letter. Still others failed completely at evoking colors, like Team BEDD. Weiss found herself especially unimpressed by Team SDWK.

"I know what you mean," agreed Yang with a wry grin. "With a name like that, I'll bet you could walk all over them."

Her teammates groaned for a moment before turning to the next page. As soon as they saw the name of the third-year team, their mouths dropped open. Yang immediately began to howl with laughter, while the other three just gaped in shock.

At that moment, the front door opened and Taiyang came in laden grocery bags. He heard Yang's laughter and saw the girls gathered in the living room.

"Hey," he said in greeting. "Did I miss something good?"

Ruby shot up from the couch and turned to face her dad, the yearbook in her hands.

"Dad!" she cried. "When you were at Beacon, was there really a Team ASSS?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I started writing this, the only thing I had planned was the part about the teams with less-than-stellar names. It's hard making a good team name out of four initials! That's probably the most difficult part of Ozpin's job.


	12. A Switch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Switch the heroes and villains around for pivotal scenes."

He ran through the ruins of Kuroyuri, fear gripping his heart. This was it, the place he'd grown up, the place where his parents had been killed, the place where he'd first met Nora. He hadn't wanted to come back here, but he had little choice.

He knew what that cave was. That was Its den. Those weapons and banners were trophies from Its past kills. And then he'd heard It roar. It was coming for his friends. He had to save them, even if it meant returning to the place where his parents died.

He and Nora came to a stop in the main square of Kuroyuri, pausing for a moment to catch their breath. Then he looked up and breathed a sigh of relief.

Ruby, Jaune, and the barely conscious form of Qrow were all right there, unharmed. The monster was nowhere to be seen.

Ruby turned to them and asked "What are you guys doing here?"

"Did you hear that noise? What was that?" asked Jaune, a bit of panic in his voice.

He was about to answer, when he heard It.

The footsteps were barely audible, even with his impressive hearing. But even so, they were unmistakable. As was the clink of metal as the monster drew Its weapons.

He sank to his knees, all four of them, as all of his past trauma came rushing back. "No," he whispered. The noise came out as an incomprehensible screech.

"Nuck, what is it?" cried Ruby.

"Wait, you guys hear that?" asked Jaune as the footsteps drew closer.

"No," Nuckelavee screeched, bowing his head in defeat.

"Nuck?" whispered Nora, stepping closer to her best friend.

That was when It entered the square. Nuckelavee lifted his head to look at his parents' killer. The monster wore the same green outfit It had all those years ago when It destroyed this town. It gripped Its weapons, a pair of bladed automatic pistols, loosely, as if It didn't think It would truly need them against such meager foes. Many of the weapons that had failed to kill It over the years were still embedded in Its back. Its black hair with a single magenta highlight waved slightly in the breeze.

Lie Ren inhaled sharply and focused Its eyes on Its next five victims.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was kind of a silly one, not to mention shorter than my average WPW submission. I just saw this prompt and wanted to do something a little crazy. The only thing I had trouble with was deciding whether or not to replace the rest of Team RNJR with Grimm as well. I decided it would be funnier to make the Nuckelavee a beloved friend of Ruby, Jaune, and Nora.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	13. Things Not to Do with Grimm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unbelievably, I managed to forget this one when I was posting my backlog and only remembered it now when something reminded me of Marley and Me. Well, here it is.
> 
> The prompt for this was "And now, for another episode of Stupid Things Not to Do with Grimm."

On today's episode of Stupid Things Not to Do with Grimm, we're going to teach you how NOT to avoid Grimm in the wilderness.

_Cut to a scene of a Huntsman walking through a forest_

When traveling through the wilderness, there is constant danger of Grimm attacks. Grimm are attracted to negative emotions, so it is important to keep a positive attitude. People have developed all kinds of ways to avoid negative emotions, but not all of them are effective at keeping Grimm away. Let's take a look.

Many people find singing to be a great way to stay cheerful.

_Hunstman walking through the forest begins singing Boop_

However, many Grimm have excellent hearing, and singing will give away your position.

_Huntsman is mauled by a pack of Beowolves_

Some people try reading uplifting books in order to stay positive.

_Cut to a Huntress walking through the woods while reading a book_

But many books contain unexpected twists, so it is important to be sure that the book you are reading is actually as cheerful as you think it is.

_The book is revealed to be Marley and Me. The Huntress is ripped in half by a Death Stalker_

Traveling in groups is common, and traveling with someone who makes you happy is a great way to avoid negative emotions.

_Cut to a Huntsman and Huntress walking through the woods holding hands_

Huntsman: I love you.

Huntress: I love you too.

_Both smile_

However, traveling is difficult and can put a strain on even the closest of relationships.

Huntress: Did you remember to pack the toilet paper?

Huntsman: I thought you were going to.

Huntress: You always do this!

_A Nevermore swoops down and grabs them both_

Some travelers have even attempted to use drugs to stave off negative emotions.

_Cut to a Huntsman walking through the woods while smoking a joint_

This Huntsman is feeling pretty mellow right now. But apparently he doesn't know that Ursae are attracted to the smell of marijuana smoke.

Hunstman: Really? Aw man.  _Drops joint and steps on it, putting it out_

However, they're even more attracted to the sadness of a man who isn't smoking marijuana for fear of attracting Ursae.

Hunstman: What?

_He is suddenly attacked by an Ursa_

In conclusion, it is important to avoid negative emotions when traveling in areas with Grimm. However, there are many pitfalls in trying to keep a positive attitude. Join us next time when we discuss the wrong way to ride a Grimm.

* * *

 

**Bonus! There were two prompts that week, and I wrote for both of them. The prompt for this one was "Write a scene which involves unlocking the semblance of one of the main cast, (besides Jaune or Ren)."**

"Yang! Ruby! The cookies are done!" Summer called upstairs to her two daughters.

Even with her highly trained Huntress's reflexes, Summer was nearly bowled over by the red blur that came flying past her through the hallway. She glanced around at the rose petals that suddenly filled the air.

Summer walked back into the kitchen to find her three year old daughter sitting at the table devouring the plate of chocolate chip cookies that had just come out of the oven. Ruby looked up at her mother with a gigantic, chocolate-covered grin.

"Tai!" called Summer to her husband. "You should get in here."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea for the first prompt came from a joke I thought up a week prior. I imagined a grizzled veteran Huntsman sitting down with a student. The student is expecting some sage wisdom, but all he gets is "Ursae are attracted to the smell of marijuana, but they're also attracted to the sadness of a man who isn't smoking marijuana for fear of attracting Ursae."
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	14. DnD with the Ozluminati

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "The Ozluminati and Winter spend a Friday night playing D&D with Ozpin as GM."

****

"Alright then," said Ozpin. "And what is your character's name?"

"Stella," answered Winter. She thought it was a fitting name for a cleric of Selune without being too on-the-nose.

"OK, then the last thing to take care of is your inventory," said Ozpin as Winter wrote the name at the top of her character sheet. Winter had played Dungeons and Dragons a few times while she was still at Atlas, but she wasn't familiar with the edition they were using. Ozpin apparently liked to be there when his players made their characters anyways to ensure that he could fit them into the adventure. And, for some reason, he had insisted that the others *not* be present for Winter's character creation.

"As a cleric," continued the headmaster. "You start with a simple melee weapon, chain mail, a shield, a holy symbol, and ten gold pieces." Winter nodded, selecting a mace as her weapon and jotting the equipment down on her sheet. "Also, roll this." He handed Winter two ten-sided dice that she knew were used as a d100.

Winter rolled the dice. One showed a result of 90, while the other showed a 2. She looked at Ozpin expectantly.

"A 92, that's good," commented Ozpin, glancing at his notes. "That was to see if you get any additional starting gear."

"Oh, alright," replied Winter. "I've never played with a mechanic like that before."

"I like think it adds something unexpected to the game," explained Ozpin. "It's fun, even if it's not entirely balanced. 92 gets you an extra weapon." He held out a d20. "Let's see what it is."

Winter rolled the die and nearly cheered when it landed on 20.

Ozpin raised his eyebrows at the die. "You get a +1 melee weapon of your choice."

Winter looked up at the headmaster in surprise. "I start the game with a +1 weapon?"

"Like I said, it's not entirely balanced. But I think it will make things interesting. Besides, the others are a level ahead of you, so this will help you hold your own."

Winter chose a war hammer as her weapon, and with that her character was finished. Minutes later, the door to the Beacon staff lounge opened and Glynda Goodwitch, James Ironwood, and Qrow Branwen entered. Greetings were exchanged, the board was set up, and the game was ready to begin. Ozpin addressed the three returning players.

"The three of you are waiting in the Apple's Core Tavern where the sheriff told you that you'd be meeting the extra adventurer he'd hired. When she enters, you immediately recognize her from the description that he gave." Ozpin turned to Winter. "Go ahead and describe your character."

Winter waited for the other three to turn their attention to her before speaking. "Stella is a fairly tall human in her mid-twenties. She has long blonde hair and grey eyes. She wears chainmail and an amulet with the symbol of Selune on it. She carries a shield and a war hammer of expert craftsmanship."

After that, the others gave brief descriptions of their own characters. Glynda played an elven wizard, James was a dwarven fighter, and Qrow was a human ranger, all much as Winter had expected. At least until Qrow's character introduced himself.

"Merric Hilltopple," said Qrow in a slightly high-pitched voice. "I'm the owner of the elephant out front."

"Oh yes," added Ozpin. "I should have mentioned that there was a large elephant tied to a post outside of the tavern."

Winter glanced back and forth between the two men, looking for some sign that they were joking. "You have an elephant?"

"Yep," replied Qrow. "I rolled it for my extra gear at first level."

"An elephant?" repeated Winter.

"Yeah, his name's Stompy. He comes in handy too. Not many bandits expect to see an elephant coming their way. Hang on, next level I get an animal companion. Can I get a second el-"

"No," interrupted Ozpin with a steely glare.

"Wow," whispered Winter. "I thought I was lucky to get a magic weapon."

Glynda sighed. "We didn't get anything."

Soon after introductions were out of the way, the party left the tavern. Their mission was to find and defeat a group of goblins who had been attacking travelers in the area. They set off down the road, the four of them riding on Stompy's back.

As a ranger, Qrow had put a number of ranks into tracking, and the sheriff had given them some clue as to where they should start looking. It didn't take them long to find the goblins' hideout, a small hovel in the woods.

"What's our plan of attack?" asked Winter.

"Uh, we have an elephant," answered Qrow. "We stomp in there and crush them all."

Winter rolled her eyes. "I think we can come up with something a little better than that."

"Actually, he has a point," James put in. Winter turned to him with a shocked look on her face. "A few goblins aren't likely to be much of a threat to an elephant. Also, Glynda and I haven't been rolling particularly well."

"You haven't made any rolls yet, sir."

"I meant for the whole campaign," James explained. "In nine hours of gameplay, I think I've made four successful rolls."

Winter was about to protest, but Qrow spoke first.

"I tell Stompy to charge in."

Winter tried to stop him, but it was too late. Ozpin described how the elephant trampled over the hovel, sending goblins scattering in all directions. They truly were no match for Stompy, but Winter wasn't willing to just sit back.

"I leap down from Stompy's back and charge the nearest goblin," she declared when it was her turn.

"Roll acrobatics to land on your feet," Ozpin ordered.

Winter rolled the d20 and deflated when it landed on 2. Adding her measly acrobatics bonus, she was left with a 3.

"You trip and fall forward as you land," described Ozpin. "You are prone and your turn ends."

James jumped down from the elephant to help Winter, but the party's luck didn't improve much from there. Even once the two melee characters were engaged with the goblins, they missed almost every attack they made. Glynda's luck was just as bad, but fortunately she had some spells that didn't require a roll to hit. Qrow and Stompy were the only ones doing any real damage, but it seemed this would be more than enough to deal with the enemies in front of them. It quickly turned into a victory for the party, but Winter was still frustrated.

"I have a +1 weapon, and I still couldn't hit anything!" she complained as her companions looted the bodies. Then she noticed the pensive look on Glynda's face.

"Qrow wasn't around when you made your character, was he?" asked the older woman.

"No. Why do you ask?"

"He was when James and I made our characters. And look at that, we didn't get any bonus equipment." She turned to glare at Qrow.

James' eyes widened in realization. "He's the reason we can't make a decent roll!"

"Whoa, hang on," protested Qrow. "That's ridiculous. I've just been having better luck than you guys."

It looked like an argument was going to break out between the three older players, when Ozpin interrupted.

"You suddenly feel the ground shake and hear a crashing noise. A few trees topple over as a pair of elephants comes stomping into view, each one ridden by a trio of goblin archers." The players stared at their DM in shock as he placed models for the elephants onto the board in front of them. The headmaster made eye contact with Qrow.

"You know what's even worse luck than your Semblance? Pissing off your Dungeon Master by cheating through the game with an elephant. Roll initiative."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was just a fun little idea I had. Qrow's Semblance messing with everyone wasn't even really the main point of it. I just wanted to express my desire for more elephants in DnD.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	15. Ghost Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For the week of Halloween, we got to write whatever we wanted as long as it was spooky. I took a spooky story that I'm fond of and adapted it for Remnant.

The Huntsman found the beast easily. The forest died in its wake, making an easy path to follow. It was like no Grimm he had ever seen before. It towered above the tree line, and strange, purple Dust crystals protruded from its body all over.

The Huntsman and his team attacked at once, but the beast was more than they were ready for. The Huntsman's Semblance let him see a few seconds into the future, but even with that he couldn't save his team. The Grimm's touch was death, and he could barely save himself from it.

Until finally, desperately searching for a future that allowed him to win, the Huntsman saw the Grimm die when he struck the Dust crystal in its chest. He avoided its next attack, leapt into the air, and lashed out with his weapon as hard as he could.

There was an explosion. Every inch of the Huntsman's body was burning with pain, and his Aura did nothing to protect him. It felt as if he were being rent apart by terrible claws. He tried to scream, but it was drowned out by the roaring in his ears. Darkness filled his vision.

He tried to look into the future to see if he survived this pain. Instead he saw his village in ruins. The walls were torn open, and the Grimm were pouring in. People ran screaming from the wreckage, but they were cut down by the nightmarish creatures. The grisly scene was lit by a full moon.

The vision faded a moment later, and the Huntsman found himself lying in the center of a massive crater. He rose on unsteady legs, only to collapse again when he looked down at himself. His clothing was gone, revealing jet black skin. A bony plate with red markings on it covered his chest. His arms were boneless, stretched out things with too few fingers. The Huntsman cried out, and his voice came out as an inhuman shriek.

He was a Grimm.

But even this shock didn't make him forget the vision that he had seen. He was certain that this was the future, and he was determined to prevent it. There would be a full moon in just a few nights. The Huntsman knew he had to reach his village and protect it when the Grimm came.

As he set off running through the forest, he tried to look into the future again and found that he couldn't. In fact, his Aura was gone completely. Instead, he felt the tireless strength of a Grimm flowing through his limbs.

The Huntsman reached his village that night. As he drew close, he realized that he could feel the negative emotions of the people inside the walls. He felt fear, sorrow, and worry. And he realized that some part of him wanted to tear into the village and destroy the source of those emotions.

But the Huntsman shook off these feelings. He was here to protect, not to destroy. He circled the village walls constantly, alert for any sign of a threat to his home.

A day passed, but no Grimm appeared. The Huntsman continued circling the village, but the only thing that he noticed was that the fear emanating from the villagers grew stronger.

"Something bad must be happening inside the village," he thought. "Something is scaring them, and once their fear gets too strong, the Grimm attack."

As the scent of fear grew stronger, so too did the instinct to attack his home, but the Huntsman resisted. He remained dedicated to protecting his village, even now that he looked like a Grimm.

Three days had passed since the Huntsman's transformation. He knew that there would be a full moon that night. He continued his vigil as the fear radiating from his home continued to grow stronger.

Then, as the sun began to dip below the horizon, the Huntsman suddenly felt a sharp pain in his back. He turned around and saw a Huntress armed with a bow standing thirty yards away. As the Huntsman moved, he felt the weight of her arrow still lodged in his back, but the pain wasn't enough to slow him down.

As the Huntress knocked another arrow, the Huntsman realized he had a decision to make. He didn't recognize the woman, so she must have come from another village. She saw him as a Grimm, and intended to slay him. He could run, but she would pursue him until he was far away from the village, possibly too far to return in time to stop the Grimm invasion. If he wanted to stay and protect his home, then he would have to fight her.

The Huntress loosed her arrow, but the Huntsman writhed out of the way, avoiding it. He charged forward and lashed out with his hand, which stretched out to strike the Huntress even from thirty yards away. She tried to dodge, but was knocked off her feet by the blow.

The Huntsman ran at her and attacked, beating her down with both of his massive hands. She tried to defend herself, but she was too weak. The Huntsman decided he had been right to fight back against her, since clearly he would make the better protector for the village when the Grimm arrived.

As the Huntsman continued to strike the Huntress again and again, he felt her terror growing. He tried to keep his Grimm instincts under control, but they kept screaming at him to fight, destroy,  **kill**.

The Huntsman's hand came down again, and he heard a  _snap_. He shrieked in horror as he saw the Huntress's neck bent at an unnatural angle. He hadn't noticed her Aura break. He had only meant to drive her off, but now she lay there in his arms, dead.

The Huntsman heard someone cry out, and he turned his gaze back towards the village. He saw people he had known his entire life lined up on top of the walls, staring down at him in horror. Their fear was practically palpable in the air.

Then the Huntsman heard a howl from behind him. He didn't need to look to know what was coming, but he did anyways.

Beowolves sprinted through the woods towards the village. There were dozens, maybe even hundreds. Ursae followed alongside them, some looking large enough to tear down the village gate alone. Nevermore circled above, their baleful calls filling the night. There were far too many for the Huntsman to hope to fight alone.

That was when he realized why the villagers were so afraid. Why, after sending their own Huntsmen off to die fighting the Dust-infused Grimm, they had hired a Huntress from the next town over. Why their terror grew each day that he stood vigil over them.

They were afraid of him.

This was all his fault.

That was when his sanity finally snapped. That was when he gave in to the Grimm's instincts. That was when the Huntsman died.


	16. Taiyang after the Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this week was "Taiyang's reactions to Yang injuring Mercury and Qrow bringing back his daughters post-Fall of Beacon."

Taiyang stood up and cheered as his daughter's victory was announced. All around him, the rest of the bar burst into applause. The blacksmith sitting next to Tai clapped him on the back.

Some of the villagers had been getting slightly annoyed with Tai's constant gushing about his daughters, but his enthusiasm was infectious, and they were always happy to see a win for Vale. Besides, Tai had come to help the small village north of Vale with their Grimm problem; he could brag about his daughters if he wanted to.

"Next round's on me!" shouted Tai, pumping his fists in the air. The cheering of the bar patrons nearly drowned out the gunshot that came from the TV. But everyone heard the Mistralian boy scream.

Tai had been looking right at the TV when it happened. His mouth fell open, and his arms dropped to his sides. He stared at the screen even after the feed was cut. The entire bar had gone silent.

"So… are you still paying for the next round?" asked the smith. Tai glared at the man, who held up his hands defensively. "OK, sorry, bad time for a joke."

Tai turned and stormed out of the bar, ignoring the stares of the villagers. He paced back and forth for a few minutes, trying to reign in his thoughts.

A part of him knew he should be angry at Yang, but he couldn't be. That would mean believing that his daughter had just broken a defenseless boy's leg. Tai couldn't bring himself to accept that, even after seeing it with his own eyes.

But that still left a whirlwind of emotions surging inside of him, not the least of which was fear for his daughter. The entire world had just seen her potentially cripple a boy for no apparent reason. Even aside from the immediate consequences, that could follow her forever.

Once Tai had himself under control, he took out his scroll and pulled up Yang's contact information. He typed a quick text message, then deleted and rewrote it a couple of times. Eventually deciding that there was no way to make it sound good, he sent her "Please call me as soon as you can." After a moment's consideration, he sent Ruby the same message.

Then he pulled up another contact and hit call. After a couple more rings than he felt he could stand to wait, Qrow answered.

"Tai-"

"You saw?" interrupted Taiyang.

"Of course I saw," answered Qrow irritably. "There isn't exactly a whole lot I can do about it."

"What the hell does that mean?" demanded Tai.

"It means that Yang is an adult now. She's responsible for her own actions."

"You should still be there!"

"Of course I'll be there," barked Qrow. "But Ironwood's in charge of security. It's his call what to do now."

"You know him," pointed out Tai. "Go talk to him!"

"And say what?" demanded Qrow. "Unless Jimmy does something crazy, there's nothing for me to say. Even if he does, I'm not sure what I could do about it."

"I'm coming to Vale, now," said Tai, fuming.

"You're still in the middle of job," Qrow reminded him. "And there's really nothing for you to do here."

"You expect me to just stay here?"

"Tai, I promise I will keep you posted. If there is anything that you could do here, I'll let you know and you can get to Vale in a few hours."

Tai sighed and considered the situation. Everything in him screamed that he should be with Yang right then. But Qrow was right, there wasn't much he could actually do for her. On the other hand, the villagers here needed his help with some Beowolves, and that was something he could actually help with.

"Fine, but I want to know the instant something happens."

"You got it," answered Qrow.

Tai hung up and glanced around. A few of the villagers were watching him with concern on their faces, but they kept a respectful distance. Tai ignored them and headed back to his hotel, figuring he'd pay his bar tab in the morning. He wanted to be alone, though he didn't expect to sleep much that night.

* * *

Tai finished the job like Qrow had told him to. Then he'd gone back to that same bar just in time to see his daughters' classmate rip apart an Atlesian girl on live TV. The girl turned out to be an android, but in a weird way that only added to the horror of the villagers. Then some strange woman started ranting about how the Huntsmen academies couldn't be trusted.

A minute later the TV started showing Grimm and Atlesian robots marching through Vale attacking anyone in sight. A few minutes after that the CCT went down.

_Everywhere._

That was in contention for the worst day of Tai's life, right behind the day Raven left and the day he found out Summer was dead.

Tai left for Vale immediately, ignoring the villagers who begged him to stay. He'd taken care of all of the Grimm in the area, and no matter how scared the people there were, the people in Vale were in more trouble. More importantly, Vale was where his daughters were, and nothing would keep him from them.

So now Tai was storming across the makeshift refugee camp in Vale, using anger to mask his fear. He headed for the apartment building where he'd been told the injured Huntsmen and Huntresses were being cared for. The people mulling around the area gave him a wide berth, and Tai doubted he was the only worried parent they'd seen that day.

As the large building came into view, Tai also spotted a disheveled man standing outside, and felt his anger come to a boil.

"Qrow!" he shouted as he approached his former teammate. "What the hell are you doing out here?"

Qrow turned to meet Tai, an annoyed look on his face.

"Tai, you know damn well why I can't set foot in a hospital. You want me around a bunch of people already on the brink of death?"

"I  _want_  you looking after Yang and Ruby!" Tai shouted back, pressing his face into Qrow's. "I'm not sure I give a shit about anyone else."

Surprised by his own words, Tai took a second to breathe and stepped back.

"Where are they?"

"They're both in there," answered Qrow. "Ruby's still asleep. Things would have been a lot worse here if her eyes hadn't gone off."

Tai took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. He thought of the first time he'd seen Summer use her power. He'd known this day would come from the moment Ruby had been born with silver eyes, but that didn't mean he was ready for it.

"What about Yang?"

Qrow hesitated, and Tai nearly broke down. But after a second that felt like an eternity, he spoke.

"You're going to want to see her yourself. She'll be OK… but it's not good."

Tai pushed past his brother-in-law without another word, his choler rising again. He walked into the building to find a tired looking woman sitting at a desk by the entrance. She started to speak, but Tai cut her off.

"Xiao Long and Rose. Where?"

"Oh um," gulped the woman, scanning the clipboard in front of her. "We put them together in 2-B. It's on the second floor to the right."

Tai dashed towards the stairway without saying anything else. He took the stairs two at a time and reached his daughters' room in a moment. As with most of the rooms, the door was open, giving Tai a good view of his girls even from the hall.

He saw Ruby first. She looked perfectly peaceful lying in the commandeered bed. It could have been any lazy weekend morning if not for the EKG beeping away on the nightstand next to her.

Then Tai saw Yang. She lay in bed facing away from the door, but from the rise and fall of her chest Tai could tell that she was awake, and she was crying. It had been years since he had seen his older daughter cry, but it wasn't hard to understand why she was now.

The bandages covering the stump of her right arm were completely clean. Her Aura had likely stopped the bleeding some time ago, but, as amazing as the powers of a Huntress were, they couldn't restore a lost limb.

"Oh Yang," breathed Tai. His daughter turned her tear-stained face to him. Her right arm lifted for a moment, and then her whole body flinched as she realized what she had tried to do. A second later she lifted her left hand to wipe the tears from her eyes.

In an instant Tai was kneeling by her bedside, clutching her as tight as he could and struggling not to cry himself.

"I'm so sorry, Yang," he whispered to her. "I got here as quick as I could, but… I'm so sorry."

The Xiao Longs held each other for several minutes, each supporting the other, but finally Tai broke off the embrace and rose to his feet.

"I'm taking you girls home," he said firmly.


	17. The Last Rose

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "The last Grimm on Remnant, an ancient Dragon, is tracked down by the last living descendant of the Rose clan. Just before she strikes the final blow, it speaks to her."

August Rose strode through the blasted hellscape in the mountains to the southeast of Vale.

A week ago this was a peaceful, if still somewhat rugged, shire where miners were extracting Dust that the presence of Grimm had long rendered inaccessible. But with the monsters gone, the time was finally right to move in and claim this land for humanity. Within ten years of the first mine being set up, hundreds of homes clung to the mountainside, and people began building their lives here.

Until they received a terrible reminder that the creatures of Grimm were not extinct yet.

The blight that August now walked across spread over two mountains and covered everything for ten miles around them. Not a single thing, plant or animal, was left alive. The houses and the mines and all other things that were made by human hands were destroyed so that nothing stood higher than a person's knees. Ash covered the ground as far as the eye could see, ankle-deep in some places. Smoke hung heavy in the air, defying all winds that should have blown it away and turning the afternoon as dark as midnight. Sometimes they seemed to form shapes, and it was easy to imagine oneself surrounded by the ghosts of the three thousand people that had died here.

But August did not falter, for she was the last of the Roses. Her family had saved Remnant a century prior, and their legacy gave her courage.

At her left hip was Crocea Lux, the blade that was broken forged anew, along with the shield that had never failed. They belonged to her great-great-grandfather, the knight-errant who defeated a Maiden to avenge his lost love but spared her life so as not to let revenge consume him.

At her right hip was the cane that had belonged to another great-great-grandfather, the last ever Man with Two Souls, who broke a millennia-spanning curse to reclaim his identity.

As for her honored great-great-grandmother, who slew the Queen of the Grimm and brought the promise of peace to Remnant, scythe and cloak were both lost to time. Of her, August had only her silver eyes, which she had used many times to smite the creatures of Grimm.

These heirlooms gave her the strength to face even the darkest of terrors without fear.

As August looked ahead to the space between the two mountains, she spoke aloud to herself.

"You hid for a hundred years, why do this now? And then why stop? If you meant to war against humanity, you'd keep killing for as long as you could. No, this destruction was your only goal…"

That was when August realized it. The Grimm knew it was the last of its kind, and that soon it would join its kin in death. This devastation was its swansong; these deaths were its last effort to remind humanity of the terror they once lived in.

August stopped walking. If this was the Grimm's attempt to go out in a blaze of glory, then it would come to her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, they pulsed with silver light, cutting through the smoky haze that surrounded the Huntress. The wave of light expanded ever outwards until it was too far to be seen.

The response came moments later.

A roar carried across the land, deafening in its volume and undeniable in its purpose. This was the roar of a creature that scorned the very idea of stealth.

A moment later the monster spread its wings to the sky, wings that looked gargantuan even when framed by two mountains. These two mighty wings beat with the force of a hurricane, and the monster rose impossibly into the air. Its serpentine body coiled through the sky as it flew forward with speed that matched even the most advanced of aircraft.

In seconds it was upon August, and she saw the full horror of its form. Knotted muscle thick as cables flexed under scales that were each the size of a dinner plate. Claws great enough to pluck a Bullhead from the sky tensed as it approached the Huntress, and jaws wide enough to end a dozen lives hung open in anticipation. Its mask of bone was bigger than a house. The patterns of red that wove over that pure white mask formed inimical shapes that meant nothing in any language known to mortals and yet somehow spoke of the end of all things. Yellow eyes glowed in the center of that mask, windows to the soullessness of the last of the Grimm.

The people of Vale had named the monster Typhon, and it was greater than the Dragon that had attacked Beacon Academy in every way save one. This monster could not spawn more of its wretched kind. Not a single new Grimm had spawned anywhere in the century since the death of Salem.

This creature truly was destined to be the last of its kind.

Typhon spread its jaws, and azure flames erupted from its maw, hot enough to melt stone. In an instant, August donned her shield and raised it in front of her. She ran her Aura through the metal of her family's eternal bulwark, and as the fire engulfed her she felt nothing more than a desert breeze.

When the flames died down, August drew forth her cane and extended it to its full length. She pointed the weapon at her foe, and the tip flashed with the light of a star. An instant later a perfect circle wide enough to drive a train through was carved into Typhon's wing. The dragon roared its outrage even as its body fell from the sky. It crashed into the ground a hundred yards away from August, and she was nearly thrown from her feet by the force of the impact.

Even as Typhon rose onto its legs, August charged forward, returning her cane to her belt to draw out Crocea Lux. The Grimm turned its gaze on her, but then flinched back as silver light began to pour from her eyes. The light cut through the miasma that covered the land, banishing the smoke that had refused to subside.

Still, like a man charging headfirst into a hailstorm, Typhon advanced through the silver light to meet its foe.

The fight was a blur for August. She remembered hacking and cutting with her ancestral blade for what could have been hours. She remembered batting aside teeth like swords and talons like spears, always inches from death. She remembered bringing her weapon down over and over to strike scales like tenfold shields. But finally, when her Aura and her strength had all but given out, Typhon broke, unable to fight any longer.

August advanced on her fallen foe, sword and shield still at the ready. She found a spot on its neck where the scales had broken, where she could land a killing blow.

"Typhon, last of the Grimm," she called, raising Crocea Lux. "With this I end the blight your wretched ilk have brought to the Rose family and to Remnant."

Typhon's body shook, and a rumbling echoed around August. She whipped her head around, confused. It sounded as if the Grimm was… laughing at her?

"Is it truly I that am the blight upon your family?" asked a voice that rumbled like thunder.

"W-what?" whispered August, as perplexed by the Grimm's words as by the fact that it could speak at all. She lowered her sword as the light in her eyes died down, and for the first time since encountering Typhon, she felt very small.

"Was it the Grimm who made you the last of your name?" demanded the monster. "Was it we who sought to control the power of the silver eyes or see it extinguished? Was it we who hunted you all your life? No… that was humanity."

"You… you're a Grimm!" August stated fiercely. "If you can speak, you do so only to cause pain!"

"Yeeesssss," agreed Typhon. "And what words could be more painful than the  _truth_? It was humanity that forced you to live in hiding. It was humanity that made you an orphan. And it was humanity that plunged Remnant into war mere decades after your ancestors brought peace. The darkness in their hearts far eclipses that of the Grimm!"

"Is this supposed to convince me to spare you?" demanded August.

"No," hissed Typhon. "Only to show you who your next target should be."

"You want me to become like you? That will never happen."

"You protect a world that hates and fears you, little warrior. You risk your life for them. Why are they worthy of your sacrifice?"

For a moment, August said nothing. She stood there motionless, eyes cast towards the ground. Finally, she spoke.

"After my parents were killed, I was alone and had nothing. I wandered the streets of Vale, sick with grief and dizzy with hunger. Most people ignored me. But then, a little girl came up to me and gave me a piece of cake. She said I looked like I needed it more than her. It wasn't much, but it kept me alive long enough to find help."

"And that redeems them all?" demanded Typhon, scorn in its voice.

August looked up at the ancient Grimm.

"Yes."

The Huntress raised her sword and plunged it into the gap in Typhon's scales. Her eyes glowed with silver fire that spread and engulfed the dragon's entire massive form. This argent beacon grew until it could be seen for miles, casting back the miasma that had fallen over the land and dispelling it forever.

"That and the boy that gave me his coat when I was cold. And the woman that helped me escape the kingdom's agents in the city. And the couple that raised me when my own parents were gone. And the man who kept my family's relics safe until I was old enough to claim them. And all of the people who helped me get justice for my parents' deaths. There may be darkness in the hearts of humanity, but there is light too! And I will  _never_  stop protecting that light!"

When the silver light subsided, nothing was left of the ancient Grimm. After thousands of years, her family's mission was finally complete, and August Rose stood alone in the afternoon sun with no one to see the tears in her eyes.


	18. Cunning Challenge: Ruby and Pyrrha

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Cunning Challenge of r/RWBYPrompts is a bi-monthly event in which writers offer ourselves up to be challenged! People give us prompts and we write short stories for them, much like Writing Prompt Wednesday. This was the story I wrote for the first Cunning Challenge.
> 
> The prompt was "Jaune Dies AU: Just prior to the battle with the Nuckelavee, Pyrrha confronts Ruby about her insecurities, and/or vice versa" given to me by SmallJon.

Pyrrha walked slowly through the streets of Kuroyuri back to where Ruby was sitting beside her uncle.

"I'm sorry, I didn't find anything," she said as the younger girl looked up at her. Ruby nodded and turned back to Qrow's barely unconscious body. His bandages, which had been changed just an hour ago, were already stained purple. Pyrrha had never realized that there were Faunus with such lethal poison as Tyrian's. For it to have this effect on a person with Aura was almost unthinkable. If an antidote wasn't found soon…

Pyrrha's thoughts were interrupted by the distant howl of a Beowolf. Pyrrha flinched at the noise. She knew that it was far away, but that was small comfort with Ren and Nora alone somewhere out there.

"You're worried about them?" mumbled Ruby, as if reading the older girl's mind.

"They're strong, and they have each other," Pyrrha replied softly. "Against Grimm, I think they have even more experience than I do. Still, it's hard to not worry after… everything."

Ruby stood and walked over to the older girl.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. Pyrrha turned to her with a surprised expression on her face. Ruby continued before Pyrrha could answer. "I never should have dragged you all into this. This is all my fault."

"That's not true," the older girl answered hurriedly. "You didn't drag any of us into this, we chose to come. And besides, it's my fault that-"

"Don't," interrupted Ruby, her face suddenly steeling a bit. "I've told you a hundred times, none of this is your fault."

Pyrrha gestured to Qrow. "How can you say that after everything he told you? If I had just taken the Maiden's power right away, then I could have stopped all of it. I could have saved Penny and…" She still had trouble saying his name.

"You said the same thing at the campfire," Ruby pointed out. "And you remember what Qrow said?"

"We weren't going to  _let_  you take the power right away," Qrow had told her. "You weren't just risking your life; you were risking your identity, your soul. There was no way you were getting in that pod without taking some time to consider it."

"I remember," answered Pyrrha. "But maybe he should have-"

"If they pressured you into the transfer and then something bad had happened," interrupted Ruby. "I don't think I could have forgiven them. Not even Qrow. And Jaune would have been even angrier."

Pyrrha flinched at the sound of his name, but at the same time she was grateful for the reminder of how much he had cared about her.

Ruby stepped closer to her friend and placed a hand on her arm.

"I miss Jaune all the time, but that doesn't mean that I'd trade you for him. I don't blame you for what happened to him, or to Penny, or anything else. It was Cinder's fault, and trying to take any of the blame yourself just makes her less guilty."

Pyrrha wiped her eyes of the tears that were starting to form there. She looked at Ruby and did her best to smile.

"Then, can you promise not to blame yourself for this?" she asked, gesturing to Qrow.

Ruby's face fell as she glanced back at her uncle. "Well, I convinced you to come along."

"Yes," agreed Pyrrha. "And I'm glad you did." Ruby looked back at her in surprise. Pyrrha sighed and glanced at her feet. "I was ready to give up. I've never given up on anything, but after Beacon and… Jaune… I didn't know how to keep going.

"When I heard that you were going to Haven like this, I almost couldn't believe it. That you were still going to keep fighting after everything you'd lost, it inspired me. It inspired all of us not to give up."

The two girls embraced each other for a moment before separating and returning to check on Qrow. Both felt a bit stronger than they had before.


	19. Cunning Challenge: Salem Travels

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's another one from the Cunning Challenges. The prompt was "Salem rarely travels, however, when she does so, there are some... peculiar arrangements that have to be made." submitted to me by shandromand.

Salem was sitting in her throne at the head of the table in her meeting hall when she decided that it was time once more to go out into the world. Her plans were at a stage where they would not require her attention for at least a few weeks. Her operatives had their orders, and there was no need to direct the Grimm towards any particular goal.

Of course, it would require no small amount of preparation for Salem to leave her realm. She sometimes wondered if it was worth the effort if she did not have a very important reason to go somewhere in person. Her agents were perfectly capable of acting on her behalf. On the other hand, she wouldn't have those agents if she hadn't gone out and found them.

Salem reached for the scroll that was resting on the table in front of her. It had become much easier to contact her operatives in the field lately. Not so long ago, she would have had to use her Grimm to locate them, and then move a Seer to their position. Given how slowly Seers moved, this could prove extremely time-consuming.

The CCT system allowed for much faster communication, but at first Salem had been both unable and unwilling to use it. The signals from the four towers did not reach her realm, and she did not trust that the privacy of her communications could be maintained.

That changed once Arthur was brought into the fold. He started by building a secondary CCT tower, much like the one in Menagerie, at the base of her castle. He promised that any traffic through it would appear to come from a perfectly innocuous modem in Atlas. He then provided Salem and her agents with encryption software that he assured her would take decades to crack. Arthur Watts had his flaws, but when it came to developing technology, his work had never been anything less than perfect.

It was almost a shame that the CCT system wouldn't be in operation for much longer.

Salem picked up the scroll and called Tyrian. Of her operatives, he was both the closest and the most willing to complete a task such as this.

Tyrian answered almost immediately, his maniacal grin appearing on the device's screen. He bowed his head respectfully before speaking.

"My lady, how may I be of service?"

"How goes your mission?" Salem asked.

"I've spoken with the villagers, and I'm certain of it now," the Faunus replied excitedly. "The Huntress who came through here was indeed the Fall Maiden. She told them her name was Amber. I got a description of her, but no one seems to know where she went next, even after  _thorough_  questioning."

Salem nodded, favoring Tyrian with a small smile. "Well done. This is more than I expected from such an old rumor. Send her description to the others, and then I have another task for you."

"Of course, my queen," Tyrian replied enthusiastically.

"I wish to go out into the world," Salem stated evenly.

Tyrian's smile somehow grew even wider.

"I understand."

* * *

Three days passed before Salem sensed that Tyrian had returned to her realm. She felt her Grimm become excited, like sharks catching the scent of blood.

All of Salem's agents bore her mark on their Auras. The Grimm would ignore them unless they exhibited extreme negative emotions. But as for the woman with Tyrian, her fear drew the creatures like moths to a flame.

With a minor effort of will, Salem quieted the Grimm surrounding her agent. They parted to allow Tyrian and his captive into the castle.

Salem descended from her tower to meet them in the entrance hall. She stood at the center of the circular room as the massive door at the end of one of the branching hallways creaked open. Tyrian strode confidently into the hallway, dragging a woman along with him.

She was a pretty young thing, even covered in cold sweat and dirt. She had fair skin and long yellow hair. Black and purple bruises stood out on her arms and face. She wore Tyrian's coat over simple farmer's clothing that was tattered and torn in several places. Her hands were bound behind her back. She squirmed as Tyrian gripped her by the back of the neck and pushed her forward towards the center of the room.

"Did you have to be so rough with her?" demanded Salem.

"Apologies, my lady," her agent replied. "Dear Gilda tried to escape and even fight back a few times. I must commend her bravery."

Salem glanced at Gilda. She could sense that the woman's Aura was strong, though it was still locked. In another life, she might have made for a decent Huntress.

The Faunus untied the Gilda's bindings and then pulled his coat off of her. He shoved her to her knees in front of Salem.

The woman looked up at Salem, her whole body trembling.

"A-Are you the… goddess that he talked about?" stammered Gilda, her voice barely rising above a whisper.

"Yes," answered Salem, her voice betraying no emotion.

"Are you going to kill me?" the woman asked almost silently.

"Yes," Salem answered. She then placed a hand on Gilda's cheek and  _pulled_.

Gilda's eyes widened and her mouth fell open. She tried to scream, but only succeeded in making a slight choking sound. Tears filled her eyes, and she seemed unable to blink them away. Spasms rocked her body, but her head remained perfectly in Salem's hand as if held there by a vice grip instead of a light touch.

Gilda's skin paled until it was all but transparent. It pulled tight against her bones. Her cheeks became hollow, and her eyes bulged as their lids shriveled away. She had already stopped breathing, and Salem could feel her racing heartbeat slow to a crawl.

When there was nothing left to take, Salem lifted her hand from Gilda's cheek, leaving a mummified corpse to collapse to the floor.

Salem looked down at her hands. Her skin was still fair, but far from the ivory color it normally was. She lifted a hand to touch her now raven-black hair.

She glanced over at Tyrian, who was staring at her with something close to rapture on his face. This was how Salem had looked when she first appeared to him as he was lost and alone. He had seen this transformation before, but he always reacted strongly to it.

"Leave me," commanded Salem. "Go and rest. Then continue the search for this Amber girl."

"Of course, my lady," replied Tyrian, tearing his gaze from her to bow his head. He turned and departed down the hall that would take him to his chambers in the castle.

Salem walked slowly to her own chambers, intending to change clothing before she left. It felt strange to possess Aura again. It lessened her connection to the Grimm, made them more resistant to her commands.

At the same time, her emotions seemed stronger, more real. Her appreciation for Tyrian's efforts felt more like real affection for the man. She thought of Ozpin, and hate that had grown cold over the centuries burned bright and hot again.

Yes, having an Aura did have some benefits.

After donning a navy gown that, while still formal, would not attract as much attention as her usual attire, Salem departed her castle through the front gate. The Grimm formed a loose circle around her, agitated by the apparent contradiction of sensing Aura within their mistress.

Salem focused, harder than she would normally have to, and a Griffon descended from the sky to land in front of her. She mounted the creature, and it took off back into the sky. Within minutes, they had left her castle far behind. Salem could feel Gilda's Aura steadily draining as her realm tried to pull her back. She estimated that she would need to return in ten days.

Salem smiled as she thought of walking in the human realm again. Nothing much would come of it, likely as not, but it always managed to be entertaining.


	20. Summer Returns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Summer returns from her last mission. She's been...changed by the experience she went through."

Summer staggered along the pathway that ran into the woods of Patch. She was exhausted and starving, but the thought of reaching home gave her energy. She wasn't sure how long she had been gone, how long she had been  _dead_ , but she knew her girls needed her, and she wouldn't rest until she reached them.

That said, there was one biological urge that couldn't wait another minute. Stepping off the pathway, Summer walked over to a tree and raised a leg to do her business.

The idea of coming back from the dead was strange enough, reincarnating as a dog made it all the stranger. But somehow, the weirdest part of all was the fact that she now inhabited the body of a  _male_  dog.

Getting used to walking on four legs and relying on smell as much as sight was not as challenging as Summer would have expected. It seemed that her canine brain came equipped with the necessary pathways for those things.

The harder part was scavenging for food and water while she traveled across Vale and back to Patch. Stowing away on a ship had been no mean feat either. If anyone found her, they might send her to a pound or try to adopt her. Such actions might be perfectly well meaning, but anything that kept her from her family was the cruelest thing imaginable as far as Summer was concerned.

_As cruel as the man who killed me._

Summer tried to think as little as possible about dying. It was a disconcerting experience to say the least. And to have been killed by one of Ozpin's former associates made it that much worse. Rainart was his name; she had seen him once when she was still a student. Ozpin told her that he had abandoned their mission, but Summer had never considered that he might come after her.

She would think about that later. Right now her only goal was to get home. She finished her business at the tree and returned to the path, moving at a steady pace.

When the cottage came into view, it looked much as she remembered it. The garden was a bit unkempt, but everything else was immediately recognizable as the house where she and Tai had lived together after Raven left.

And there, sitting on the porch with her head resting in her hands, was their older daughter. Summer had planned to act like any old stray dog when she approached, but then she saw the somber expression on Yang's normally sunny face and she needed to be beside her  _now_.

Summer sprinted across the yard as fast as her little legs would carry her and practically bowled right into Yang. She stood on her hind legs and placed her front paws on the young girl's chest, reaching up to lick at her face.

"Ah!" squealed Yang, joy quickly replacing the shock in her voice. "Hi there, who are you? Yes, I'm glad to meet you too." Summer felt the girl's hand on her back, petting her.

_Gods, how she's grown!_  Summer thought, love swelling in her chest just like the first time she laid eyes on Yang. That was before Raven left, but even then she had felt a connection between them. Summer would never understand how her teammate could have left behind something so precious.

"Doggie!" called a voice from the doorway, and Summer's heart nearly burst as Ruby stepped outside to join them.

_She can talk now!_

Summer moved away from Yang and towards her younger daughter, reaching up to lick Ruby's face while being careful not to knock the toddler over.

Soon both girls were petting her and accepting wet doggie kisses. Summer was overjoyed to be there. She recognized the sadness in her daughters' eyes and knew that it was her fault for dying. They didn't know that she was back and unless she could find some way to return to her human form, they probably never would. But at least she was here to comfort them in that way that only a dog could.

"Dad, come see!" shouted Yang, and at the thought of seeing Tai again after Gods knew how long, Summer internally fretted over how she looked.

_I look like a dog,_  she reminded herself.  _There isn't a whole lot I can do about that._

It was another minute before Tai came out of the house, looking bedraggled and tired. It looked like he hadn't showered or shaved that day and maybe not the day before either. Summer was reminded of his breakdown after Raven left, and the thought that she had caused him similar distress broke her heart.

"Can we keep him? Can we?" begged Yang, hugging Summer around the neck.

"Please!" added Ruby, giving her most devastatingly cute expression.

Summer winced internally as she realized that her family was probably going to misgender her for the rest of her life, but she figured she could live with that as long as she could be with them. She looked up at her husband expectantly.

Tai opened his mouth to answer, but then stopped as he made eye contact with Summer. The two held each other's gaze for a moment as he stood there with his mouth open before finally recovering.

"I'll have to see if he belongs to anyone already, but yeah, I think we can keep him."

Yang and Ruby cheered and threw their arms around their new dog. Tai knelt down to scratch Summer behind the ears.

"I had a dog that looked a bit like you when I was a kid," her husband told her. "His name was Ein. I guess we could call you Zwei."

Summer gave a quick bark of acceptance at the name. She would certainly try to find a way to return to her human form, but she didn't have any real expectation of success. Instead, she'd focus on learning to live as her family's dog.

She would never get to be a mother to her daughters or a wife to her husband again, but at least she would be here with them. She couldn't teach Yang and Ruby to be women or to be Huntresses, but she could still support them along the journey. She could still play with them and cuddle with them. She could still dry their tears when they were sad and listen when they needed to talk. She could still protect them until they no longer needed her.

That would just have to be enough for Summer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me about zero seconds after I saw the prompt to come up with the idea for this. But it took me a whole week to make this decent. I've been told it's exceptionally feels-y, and I thought that was exactly what you should get from Summer coming back from the dead.
> 
> As an aside, they mentioned her again! Volume 5 Chapter 8 broke the nineteen chapter streak of not bringing up Summer Rose. I don't know about you, but I was salty that it took them this long to remember that Ruby has a mom.
> 
> Anyways, thanks for reading!


	21. Pyrrha's Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This week was another Free-For-All! The prompt for this story was "Pyrrha is late for her wedding."

Pyrrha dashed through the hallway of the small church outside of Mistral as quickly as she could in her wedding gown. This was about as embarrassing as anything she could think of. Last minute preparations had taken longer than they were supposed to, and now she was late to her own wedding.

Her own wedding. The thought still felt so strange to Pyrrha.

She arrived at the door to the chapel where Ren and Nora were already waiting for her. Ren breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her, while Nora stuck her head through the door to loudly stage whisper "She's here." On the other side of the door, music started playing almost immediately.

"I'm sorry," Pyrrha whispered to her teammates, her face red with embarrassment.

"It's alright," assured Ren, helping her lower her veil.

"I could have ruined everything," groaned Pyrrha.

"It'll be fine," insisted Nora. Before Pyrrha could say anything else, she threw open the doors to the chapel and began walking down the aisle, tossing flower petals with a bit more vigor than was absolutely necessary.

Pyrrha shook her head to clear her mind and took Ren's arm. The two of them began marching after Nora as the music picked up.

Pyrrha had wanted her parents to be present to see her married, but they both thought that she was still dead. She was aching to see them again, but it was safer for them not to know that she was alive, not until Salem was defeated. And, besides, as far as Pyrrha was concerned, her teammates were as good as family.

As she walked down the aisle, she cast a quick glance around the chapel. For the most part, it was simply arranged with two rows of pews leading up to the pulpit. There were flower arrangements spread around the room, but the most notable features were the large stained-glass windows that lined the side walls and the full-size statues of armored Huntsmen that were raised between them. They were like stone protectors watching over Pyrrha's wedding.

She glanced around at the people standing as she passed. Team RWBY was there, as were Oscar, Sun, and some of Blake's friends from Menagerie, but she couldn't see any trace of Jaune. She had to try very hard not to let that bother her.

Finally, Pyrrha turned her gaze to the ever-nearing pulpit. Standing behind it was Blake's father. As the chieftain of Menagerie, Ghira was the only member of their little cohort with the authority to perform a marriage ceremony. In addition, Pyrrha had found she liked the man as soon as she met him, and she might have asked him to officiate her wedding even if she had been given more choices.

And beside the chieftain was her groom, resplendent in his tuxedo, gray hair neatly combed for once, his ever-present smirk replaced with a real smile. Pyrrha beamed as she made eye contact with him behind the veil.

As she reached the pulpit, she separated from Ren and stepped up to come face to face with her groom. He lifted the veil to reveal her smiling face, and Ghira began to speak.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join Pyrrha Nikos and Mercury Black in holy matrimony. If any person here can show cause why these two should not be joined, speak now or forever hold your peace."

At that moment, the door to the chapel burst off its hinges, and a fireball came careening down the aisle. It hit the pulpit and exploded, knocking Pyrrha, Mercury, and Ghira off their feet.

Pyrrha rose to her feet as quickly as she could to see Cinder glide into the room with Emerald close behind her. The half-covered injury on her face did nothing to lessen Pyrrha's anger at the woman who had killed her.

"I have a reason," declared the Fall Maiden in a slightly scratchy voice. "Dead people can't marry." She raised her hand and another fireball appeared in it.

However, before she could throw it, Pyrrha raised her arms and activated her Semblance. All around the chapel, the floor burst as everyone's weapons crashed through and into the Huntsmen's waiting hands. In an instant, Pyrrha, Nora, Ren, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Oscar, Sun, and Ilia went from defenseless wedding guests to armed and deadly fighters.

This was why Pyrrha had been late. Hiding the weapons somewhere that she could reach with her Semblance had taken longer than she expected. The church's basement proved difficult to navigate, and a few changes to the guests' seating were made at the last minute.

"Ha!" laughed Cinder. "We thought you might have found a way to sneak your weapons in. But we came prepared to fight all of you!"

As she spoke, the windows shattered as large black shapes crashed through them. A dozen Beowolves, all appearing to be Alphas, landed at the sides of the chapel, surrounding the Huntsmen. Each one had a steel plate covering its head, and their arms had been replaced with mechanical ones covered in razor-sharp blades. Two of the Grimm even had machine guns built into their limbs.

"Watts' cyborgs!" shouted Mercury. He had warned them that such abominations existed, but he didn't know their full capabilities. Still, his warning at least lessened the shock of seeing machine melded with Grimm.

The machine gun-armed Beowolves opened fire on the crowd and like that the battle was joined. Pyrrha and Weiss used their Semblances to defend against the machine gun fire while the rest of the Huntsmen and Huntresses charged into the fray with the rest of the cyborg Grimm.

Ruby took a step back from the fighting, while Yang and Oscar moved to protect her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them to reveal a soft silver glow. The Grimm shrank from the radiance, and Cinder sneered even as the light grew brighter.

"Has she mastered her power?" growled the Fall Maiden.

Then Ruby cried out as a flash of blinding light exploded in front of her. A deafening screech, like nails on a chalkboard, but a million times louder sounded in her ears. The young Huntress collapsed, and the silver light disappeared.

"You're not the only one who's learned some new tricks," said Emerald snidely.

"Ruby!" cried Yang. She nearly turned to help her sister, but one of the cyborg Beowolves redoubled its attack at that moment. Sparks flew from Yang's mechanical arm as she used it to block the monster's metal claws.

The battle quickly turned against the students. They had lost what they thought was their trump card, and at the same time they suddenly had to protect Ruby's prone form. The cyborg Grimm were significantly more dangerous even than an Alpha Beowolf, and it was everything the Huntsmen could do to hold them back.

Pyrrha wanted to rush into battle with the simple xiphos sword and hoplon shield she had used to replace her own broken weapons, but it was taking all of her and Weiss' combined focus to stop the machine gun-armed Grimm from mowing down her allies. That was when she spotted Cinder in the center of the room, looking at Pyrrha as she summoned a long, glass spear.

Pyrrha's mind raced with possibilities. None of her friends were in a position to help her. Could she defend herself while maintaining her Semblance? Could she afford to drop her protection for a moment while she parried the attack? Pyrrha wasn't sure, and she knew that lives hung on her decision.

As Cinder raised the spear for a throw, Pyrrha saw movement out of the corner of her eye. One of the statues that lined the room threw itself from its pedestal and towards the Fall Maiden. Cinder noticed just in time to turn her head and see the statue's sword strike her chest. Her Aura saved her life, but she was still knocked from her feet with a grunt of pain.

The Huntsman deactivated his Semblance, and his stone body turned back into flesh and blood. Jaune Arc stood over the Fall Maiden, Crocea Mors poised above her throat.

From the back corner of the room, the sound of breaking glass rang out. Neo appeared from nowhere, her blade already drawn from her parasol, and in an instant she decapitated one of the cyborg Beowolves, freeing Pyrrha's focus. The diminutive girl tapped her scroll, and the monotone of her text-to-speech device said "Surprise, bitch."

"What?" cried Cinder, raising her hand and blasting a torrent of flame in Jaune's face. However, a flash of light returned Jaune to his stone form, and he was unharmed by the fire.

"You only saw my Semblance once," the Huntsman reminded her. "You never knew the full extent of its power." He raised Crocea Mors and brought it down with all his might, breaking Cinder's Aura and opening up her chest with a spray of blood.

"Cinder!" cried Emerald, turning to face Jaune. But before she could move to attack, Mercury's boot hit her in the cheek, knocking her off her feet. Mercury quickly threw himself on top of his former partner, keeping his hands on her so that he'd know where she was even if she used her Semblance on him.

With her attention freed, Pyrrha grabbed one of the Beowolves with her Semblance and ripped it apart with its own mechanical augmentations. With Neo's help, the Huntsmen quickly turned the tables and destroyed the remaining Grimm.

When the fight was over, Yang went to check on Ruby and managed to wake her from unconsciousness. Ren, Nora, and Blake worked together to bind Emerald, while Pyrrha, Jaune, Oscar, and Mercury stood around Cinder, who was paling from blood loss.

"This whole wedding was a trap?" demanded the Fall Maiden weakly.

"Yep," answered Mercury with a smirk. "The traitor marrying the girl who came back to life? We knew you wouldn't be able to resist."

"The hardest part was convincing you that Mercury and I were really in love," added Pyrrha.

"Aw, come on, it wasn't that bad," Mercury protested.

"The hardest part," reiterated Pyrrha. "I mean really, one of the hardest things I've ever had to do."

"You've made your point," the former assassin said drily.

"He was just really unpleasant to be around. I honestly think I would have rather dated Cardin."

"We get it!" shouted Mercury.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" cried Pyrrha as she realized that she'd been ranting. Mercury muttered something under his breath and walked away.

"And I had to pretend to be angry enough to miss the wedding," added Jaune. "Even then, it might not have been enough if Neo hadn't shown up. She had come to take revenge on Ruby, but we managed to convince her that you were the one who was really responsible for Torchwick's death."

"If you're going to keep gloating, could you just kill me now?" demanded Cinder, looking even paler than before.

That was the sticking point. They had Cinder now, but they hadn't decided quite what to do with her yet. Keeping her prisoner would be almost impossible, and they could have used the Fall Maiden's powers, but still they weren't sure about killing a defenseless captive.

Oscar stepped forward and placed a hand on Cinder's chest. Her wound glowed with green light, and then slowly disappeared. When Oscar removed his hand, Cinder fell unconscious. His Semblance had healed her but also left her weak.

"She'll be out for close to a day," Oscar declared with Ozpin's voice. "I will see if I can remove the Fall Maiden's power, but if that fails we will likely have to kill her. While she is awake."

Pyrrha and Jaune nodded in acceptance. In spite of all the pain she had caused them, both were still reluctant to take Cinder's life. Still, that could be a question for tomorrow.

As ever, Nora managed to shatter the somber mood.

"Hey guys, fake wedding, real reception! Let's go!" Everyone cheered, and quickly filed out of the chapel to the garden where the food had been laid out. Soon, only Pyrrha and Jaune were left.

"So," began Jaune. "Was your wedding everything you imagined it would be?" Both laughed at the ridiculousness of his question.

"You know," Pyrrha replied after a moment. "If I ever do get married for real, I think I'd like to do it outside."

"If?" noted Jaune.

"Well," answered Pyrrha. "I'd have to find the right man." She turned to face Jaune, and green eyes met blue. Both of them were smiling brightly, and unlike Pyrrha's earlier smiles, this one was real.

"Come on," said Jaune after a moment, offering his hand. "Let's go before Nora eats everything."

Pyrrha took it and turned to walk outside to her wedding reception, hand in hand with the man she loved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a ton of fun. That's about all I have to say, it was just a total blast for me. Though if you couldn't tell, I've never been to a wedding and barely know what's supposed to happen. And yes, it was written just a few days before Jaune's Semblance was revealed.


	22. Summer Confesses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another prompt from the Free-For-All. This one was "Summer tells Tai some big news."

Summer entered the clearing at a run and didn't slow down until she reached the entrance to the small cottage in the middle of the woods on Patch. She dug her key out of a pocket in her cloak and let herself in.

The house was completely dark, but there was enough light from the shattered moon shining through the windows for Summer to see. A quick glance into the living room told her that Tai was lying on the couch with one arm covering his eyes. He glanced up at the sound of the door opening but didn't say anything.

Summer walked past him and into Yang's bedroom to find the infant sleeping peacefully in her crib. As far as Summer could tell, she'd been fed and had her diaper changed recently. At least Tai wasn't that far gone.

In spite of her somber mood, Summer couldn't help but smile at the sight of the sleeping baby. The joy that she felt every time she looked at Yang helped strengthen her resolve.

_I'm going to tell him. I have to tell him tonight._

Summer walked back out to the living room and stood in front of the coach. Tai didn't react to her presence.

"Tai," she said aloud.

He sighed before answering. "Hey, Summer."

Summer's shoulders slumped at his despondent tone. A part of her wanted to leave and come back when he was feeling a bit better. But she'd seen Tai depressed before, and he wouldn't just start feeling better with a bit of time. He needed someone to help pull him out of his depression.

"I talked to Qrow," she began. "He's not mad at you for punching him."

"OK," replied Tai disinterestedly.

Summer sighed. "Tai, can I sit down?"

Tai grumbled under his breath before sitting up and moving to make room for Summer on the coach. Though there was more than enough space for two people, she sat close enough to Tai that their knees nearly touched. He glanced at her for just a moment before looking away.

Summer's heart was pounding, just like it did every time she thought about doing this. She had faced down Grimm the size of houses without flinching, but this scared her speechless. It had scared her into inaction even before she knew Raven was interested in Tai, let alone before they started dating.

But now Raven was gone, and Tai needed this. She wasn't doing this just for herself, but for both of them. That alone gave her the courage to speak.

"Tai, I'm in love with you."

He turned to look at her with his eyes wide and his mouth open. Summer searched for any sign of happiness beneath his surprise, and wanted to run from the room when she couldn't find any. But the words were out there now, and she couldn't take them back. She could only press on.

"I've loved you practically from the day we met. You were so nice to me, and you believed in me right away like nobody else did. You were the person I needed when I got to Beacon, and I never stopped loving you for it."

Summer looked at the floor as she continued.

"And I love  _Yang_  too. I didn't think that I would. The whole time Raven was pregnant, I had to keep telling myself 'Summer, if you ever mistreat that little girl because of who her mother is, you'll never forgive yourself.'" The room blurred as Summer's eyes welled up with tears. "And then she was born… and she was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. And you let me hold her, and she smiled at me, and I was so happy I thought my heart would burst. I couldn't explain it, but I knew that she was special, and that I would give anything to be a part of her life. I don't know how Raven could possibly leave something so precious."

Summer wiped the tears from her eyes and looked back up at Tai, catching a glimpse of a smile vanishing at the mention of Raven. She reached out and took his hands in hers. She moved a bit closer to him and looked deep into his eyes.

"I want to be there for you. For both of you. I love you too much to just watch you hurting. So please let me in."

Tai just sat there for a few seconds, a stunned look on his face. Summer was left holding her breath waiting for his answer.

It finally came when Tai leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.

For a moment, Summer was too stunned to react. When she finally processed what was happening, her heart soared, and she kissed him back hungrily. The feel of his lips against hers was everything she had imagined it would be, and she didn't want it to end.

Later, Summer would wonder if Tai was just using her to fill the hole in his hear that Raven left. Eventually, he would prove that he loved her every bit as much as she loved him. Soon after that, they would be married and agree to tell Yang that Summer was her mother.

But that would all come later. For that moment, they were the only thing that existed in the other's world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a scene I had been thinking about for a long time, and I had been waiting for a chance to right it. Honestly, I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out, but I'm still glad to have gotten it out there. Let me know what you think.


	23. Lin Manuel Miranda's RWBY

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last one from the January Free-For-All, and it's a prompt that I submitted myself. The prompt is "RWBY as written by Lin Manuel Miranda."

**Ruby**  
I am not throwing away my shot  
I am not throwing away my shot  
Hey yo, I'm fin'ly here at Beacon  
This whole thing has got me freakin'  
But I am not throwing away my shot!

Two years early here at Beacon college  
I prob'ly shouldn't brag, but dag, I amaze and astonish  
The problem is I got a lot of skill but no polish  
I'm good, but I still gotta learn  
Like Oz said, I'm here for knowledge  
I'm a silver-eyed protector, a small and honest soul  
Tryin' to reach my goal, my skills with a scythe: undecipherable  
Only fifteen but I kick butt like I was older  
Grimm and criminals get bolder, I shoulder  
Ev'ry burden, ev'ry disadvantage  
I have learned to manage this sniper-scythe that I brandish  
I walk these streets famished  
The plan is to fan this spark into a flame  
But damn it's getting dark so let me spell out my name  
I am the

**Ruby/Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
R-U-B-Y R-O-S-E, easy? Now you see.

**Ruby**  
The kingdoms try to survive independently  
Meanwhile, the Grimm keep shittin' on us endlessly  
Essentially, they hunt us relentlessly  
Then Torchwick turns around, goes on a crime spree  
Stealing all the Dust that we need to live free  
He's a pretty bad guy, I think we can agree  
Enter me

**Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
She says in parentheses

**Ruby**  
Don't be shocked when the storybooks mention me  
Still at Signal and I stopped a robbery  
Though I'd still rather be a girl with normal knees

But I am not throwing away my shot  
I am not throwing away my shot  
Hey yo, I'm fin'ly here at Beacon  
This whole thing has got me freakin'  
But I am not throwing away my shot!

**Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
I am not throwing away my shot  
I am not throwing away my shot  
Hey yo, I'm fin'ly here at Beacon  
This whole thing has got me freakin'  
But I am not throwing away my shot!  
It's time to take a shot!

**Jaune**  
On the ship over I puked overboard  
But I still plan to be a hero with my family's sword  
I hope my weapon doesn't leave you all bored  
But it's my name all the ladies will soon adore  
When I take my

**Ruby/Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
Shot!

**Yang**  
Yo, I've had a hard life, but I stay upbeat  
Being half as cool as me would be a mean feat  
My mom left and I had to grow up at a young age  
To take care of my sis, mess with her and you'll see my rage  
And you'll get

**Ruby/Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
Shot!

**Blake**  
But we'll never truly be free  
Until those with cat ears have the same rights as you and me  
The White Fang had it right until they got too violent  
But I'll stay defiant, no we can't be silent  
Have another

**Ruby/Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
Shot!

**Weiss**  
You dolt! What are you doing?  
Do you even hear the nonsense that you're spewing?  
This isn't just practice, we're here to fight Grimm  
And you're playing around, what are you, dim?  
If you mess around you'll get

**Ruby/Jaune/Yang/Blake**  
Shot!

**Weiss**  
I was going to say hurt

**Ruby**  
Weiss, check what we got  
Mister Arc here dressed up like Lancelot  
We all know my sis is hot  
Hey Blake, I like you a lot  
With your bow blacker than the kettle calling the pot  
We're like no others, and the Brothers put us all in one spot  
Poppin' a squat on conventional wisdom, like it or not  
A crew of students, such colorful characters  
Let the Grimm come 'cause we'll be the predators!

_Ruby trips on Weiss' luggage and explodes_

Oh, did I step on a glyph?  
I should'a been more careful, that put me in my place  
I guess now you can just call me Craterface  
But come on, Weiss, don't be so stiff

**Ozpin**  
Let's throw these kids off of a cliff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh this one way fun. I had to follow-up the Shakespeare prompt with something, didn't I? I thought about doing the second half of the song too, but the second half is more repetitive, and I kind of liked leaving it with Ozpin. Hope you all like it!


	24. Pyrrha Lives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "In a reverse of events, Pyrrha is the last one standing after the Battle of Beacon."

"Are you ready?" asked Professor Ozpin.

Pyrrha hesitated for a moment, then summoned her resolve and nodded in reply.

"I… I need to hear you say it," the headmaster said sadly.

"Yes," answered Pyrrha, pushing away the doubt that still gripped her heart.

"Thank you, Miss Nikos." Professor Ozpin returned to the console and touched a few more buttons. Pyrrha heard a mechanical whir as Amber's pod was elevated. Then there was a humming as the process began. Orange light began to fill the inside of Pyrrha's pod.

She wasn't ready for the pain. It came up on her suddenly, causing her to scream and making her whole body convulse. Distantly she heard Jaune call out her name, but she couldn't focus on anything but her agony.

The pain wasn't in her body but her soul. It was like heartbreak distilled into something tangible. Pyrrha felt as if her own Aura was trying to rip her into pieces in a way that went beyond the physical. It hurt more than anything she had ever experienced.

Pyrrha tried to cling to something, some thought or memory that could make her strong enough to endure this. She conjured images of her team, her friends, and her past victories, only to have them all washed away by the pain. Her mind kept desperately seeking some comfort, and she felt herself mouth the word 'Mother.'

An image flashed through her mind of a woman's smiling face. She had dark skin and short, chocolate-colored hair that matched her big, expressive eyes. She was a bit portly, and wrinkles were beginning to develop on her forehead, but she still possessed a matronly beauty. The image put Pyrrha at ease, just as the sight of her mother always did.

But then she began to panic as she realized that something was wrong.

_You are not my mother._

Another image appeared in her mind, this time of a man with sandy blonde hair and lightly freckled skin. A rough, untrimmed beard covered his cheeks. His blue eyes sparkled with humor. He was looking down at Pyrrha with an approving smile that filled her with pride.

_You are not my father._

Pyrrha saw a young boy running towards her, calling out for her to come and play with him. He was a wiry kid, short even for his age. He took after his father mostly, but he had inherited his mother's eyes, just like she had.

_No, this is wrong. You're not my brother; I don't have a brother!_

Images continued to flash relentlessly through Pyrrha's mind. She remembered a house in Vale that she'd never been to and a bed that she'd never slept in. She remembered beloved pets even as she knew that she'd never been good with animals. She remembered playing in the snow with friends that she had never met. She remembered losing in the individual round of the Vytal Festival tournament after a long and difficult fight. She remembered graduating from Beacon with the three other girls on her team, and she remembered celebrating her twenty-second birthday a short time later.

_This is all wrong. This isn't me._

Pyrrha saw a boy in a Beacon uniform leaning against a doorframe. His short brown hair framed roguish, well-defined features. His clear blue eyes shone like sapphires, piercing her to her core. She knew that behind his self-assured smirk was a kind, sensitive boy who loved animals and played the violin, but that smile still made her knees weak. Seeing his face filled her with love, desire, and no small amount of regret at how things had ended between them.

She remembered the first time they'd kissed, under the light of the full moon outside of the training hall at Beacon. The taste of his lips had been everything she'd imagined, and she had wanted the moment to last forever.

She remembered two weeks later when they'd retreated to his dorm room and she'd eagerly stripped off her shirt to show herself to him. She remembered the feel of his hands on her body, and she remembered-

_No, please don't take that from me. Please!_

And in that moment of denial, the flood of memories stopped. The pain that had consumed Pyrrha began to subside, and her heart leapt as she became herself again.

_I am Pyrrha Nikos! My parents are Jason and Hippolyta Nikos! I come from Mistral, and I am a champion fighter! I am the top student in my class at Beacon, and I am in love with Jaune Arc!_

As Pyrrha screamed inside her own mind, the pain in her soul vanished as Amber's identity retreated from her own.

And at the same time, the Fall Maiden's power withdrew from her. Pyrrha had been too consumed by agony to notice it before, but while the transfer was happening power had surged through her veins with the fury of a coursing river. But that power receded from her the instant she reasserted her identity.

At the same time, Pyrrha felt certain that Amber was dead. The machine had drawn her soul from her body, leaving only a corpse in the other pod. The only question remaining was whether Pyrrha allowed that soul into her own body or left it to die as well.

Pyrrha realized she'd been given one last chance to make her choice. She could accept the Fall Maiden's power and Amber's soul along with it, or she could reject the burden and keep her identity. Mustering her strength, she cracked open her eyes to take one last look at Jaune.

She saw him desperately fighting to keep his shield up, withering under a furious flurry of blows from a pair of jet black scimitars wielded by a raven-haired woman. Jaune backpedaled as her strikes rained down on him, denying any chance at a counterattack.

_Cinder? She's from Mercury's team! What is she doing here?_

Pyrrha's heart raced as Cinder batted Jaune's shield aside and cut him across the chest, damaging his Aura. Before she could get in another blow, a green blur knocked her backwards. Pyrrha just barely made out Professor Ozpin striking Cinder with his cane before returning to the machine's console with the same emerald flash of speed.

As Ozpin furiously worked the controls of the machine, Cinder raised her weapons again and faced off against Jaune. Pyrrha saw a tiny tremor of fear go through Jaune's body, and in that instant her choice was made.

_I accept._

The Maiden's power surged through Pyrrha once more, but this time there was no pain. The storm of memories returned, but they didn't overwhelm Pyrrha. Instead, the events of Amber's life flowed into her, and she allowed each one to become a part of her identity.

_I accept you, Amber Hollyfield. I accept your life and your memories. I accept your love and your pain. I accept everything that you are into me. I will keep your soul within myself, and in my heart protect thee._

Every experience that made Amber who she was flashed through Pyrrha's mind, right up to the moment when Cinder stole the girl's power and left her in a coma. Though it was a lifetime's worth of memories, the transfer took only a second to complete, and the Fall Maiden was reborn.

No sooner had the tide of images finished then Pyrrha felt the machine power down around her. She opened her eyes again just in time to see Jaune knocked off his feet by a blast of fire from Cinder's hand.

Pyrrha screamed out her anger, and the door was ripped off her pod and thrown across the room. Gale-force wind howled through the underground vault, snuffing out Cinder's flames and nearly blowing her off her feet.

Pyrrha leapt from her pod, calling Miló and Akoúo̱ to her hands with her Semblance. She rushed towards Cinder, who was squinting against the wind and barely saw the thrust that hit her in the chest, digging into her Aura.

Cinder staggered backwards and snarled with rage. Fire leapt from her body in all directions, fierce enough to counter Pyrrha's wind. She raised her blades just in time to block a cut from Miló that would have caught her in the cheek, but Pyrrha continued to press the attack.

_She hurt Jaune._

_She_  killed  _me._

The two Maidens fought blade to blade as the elements clashed around them. Fire raged up around the combatants only to be battered down by roaring wind. At the same time, the clang of glass on bronze reverberated through the hall as Miló and Akoúo̱ met Cinder's twin scimitars over and over again.

Cinder was the most skilled that Pyrrha had ever faced, and she wore no metal that could be manipulated with polarity. But Pyrrha didn't need her Semblance to win when she had all the skill and experience of two Vytal Festival finalists. The pace of combat accelerated with each attack, and yet Pyrrha never once lost track of the action. Every move she made was guided by carefully honed instinct and executed flawlessly, a dance of battle that was worthy of a demigoddess.

Yet still Cinder did not go down. She fought with the fury of a Grimm and the grace of a dancer, golden fire burning in her right eye. Her scimitars weaved a web of death that would have left any lesser opponent a bloody mess, and it took every ounce of Pyrrha and Amber's combined battle instinct to keep up.

Then Pyrrha felt something moving behind her. The next time that Cinder lashed out with her blades, Pyrrha spun to the side to avoid the attack…

And revealed Ozpin behind her, lunging forward with his cane. Caught completely off guard, Cinder was struck in the chest and stumbled back a step. Ozpin pressed the attack, hitting her over and over with thrusts too quick to be seen. He punctuated the flurry of blows with an upward strike to the chin that lifted Cinder off her feet.

At which point Pyrrha leapt up and spiked her opponent back to the ground with a vicious slash from Miló. Cinder fell onto her side and dropped both of her weapons. Her orange Aura flashed around her and then dissipated, visibly breaking.

Pyrrha took a step closer to her fallen foe, only to have Cinder explode into motion, leaping back to her feet.

"NO!" screamed the would-be Fall Maiden, conjuring another scimitar out of glass in her right hand. She lashed out with a savage cut that Pyrrha barely blocked with Akoúo̱. Cinder immediately followed this by raising her left hand and unleashing a torrent of fire at her opponent's face.

Pyrrha raised her arm in front of the flames and channeled the Maiden's power into a wave of sheer cold that protected her from Cinder's attack. When the fire stopped, Pyrrha pushed Akoúo̱ against her opponent's weapon and attacked with Miló in a high horizontal slash.

She was prepared to defend against the riposte when she realized there had been no parry. Pyrrha tore her gaze from her opponent's weapons to find a confused expression on Cinder's face. Miló had traced a crimson line across her throat, a cut that now leaked blood in little rivers down her body.

The scimitar in Cinder's hand disintegrated, and she stumbled forward. Without thinking, Pyrrha dropped her weapons to catch her opponent's falling body. The two Maidens met each other's gaze even as the golden fire disappeared from Cinder's eye.

"I'm sorry," whispered Pyrrha. "This burden was mine to bear, not yours. But please understand that I will use it as it was meant to be used."

A golden light suffused Cinder, and then left her body to surround Pyrrha. The Fall Maiden's power surged within her until it was great enough to summon the full fury of the elements. It was beyond anything Pyrrha had ever felt before, but for Amber this was the power as it was meant to be, and she was glad to be back at full strength.

Pyrrha lowered her enemy's body to the ground before turning her gaze towards the back of the room. She cried out when she saw Jaune lying on the ground unmoving, Professor Ozpin kneeling over him.

She was at his side in an instant and nearly screamed when she saw the angry red burns covering his chest and face. Cinder's fire had seared through his sweatshirt and even melted his armor slightly, revealing the damage done to him. His breathing was ragged and growing weaker with each moment. The sight was mercifully blurred as Pyrrha's eyes filled with tears.

The Professor Ozpin laid a hand on Jaune's chest, and green light began to surround the boy. It washed over his burns and healed them until it was like they had never been there at all. His breathing settled, and aside from the damage to his clothes it looked like he could have been peacefully sleeping.

"He will live," the headmaster declared. Pyrrha cried out in relief and leaned over her friend's body to hug him close to her.

"How?" she managed to choke out through her sobs.

"Magic," whispered Ozpin. "A small feat compared to what I've done in the past, but all that I'm capable of right now. Another incarnation and I probably won't be able to do even this much."

Pyrrha didn't understand what he meant, but that didn't matter because Jaune would live! She cried tears of joy over him, and nothing else mattered to her.

But then she realized that there was a part of her that didn't feel that way. A part of her wasn't overjoyed that her beloved was alive, only relieved that a stranger hadn't died for her.

As Pyrrha held Jaune's face in her hands, she knew that Amber didn't love him. Remembering the boy that she had given her virginity to, Pyrrha realized that Amber might never love him.

The thought left her cold inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, I've been thinking about something like this for a long time. I don't think I've ever seen someone write about what would happen if the Aura transfer were successful, and that's a shame because it could have really interesting consequences. I may even try to turn something along these lines into a full fic. Let me know what you think.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	25. The Evil League of Evil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Salem forms an Evil League of Evil of different villains from different franchises."

Seated on the throne of purple crystal in her meeting hall, Salem sensed their approach. None of them ever came in through the front gate of her palace, preferring to arrive directly in the chamber near the top of the palace. Salem suspected that they did so simply to remind her that they could appear wherever they pleased, but they at least did her the courtesy of signaling their coming.

Salem had already instructed Watts and Tyrian to remain in their chambers. She had no desire for them to meet her partners. Her Evil League of Evil, as at least one of their members amused himself by calling it.

Though the warning appeared in Salem's mind as a slight pressure, she had to wait a minute before the first of them arrived. When he did so, it was as sudden as lightning on a clear day. He emerged from the shadows as if he had always been there, wearing a cloak of dark colored cloth beneath which was only darkness. No matter how the light fell upon him, everything beneath that cloak was wreathed in oily shadow. Looking into his face was like staring into the bottom of an infinitely deep well.

Salem rose from her throne as he arrived and inclined her head to him. "Haliax," she greeted the leader of the Chandrian.

"Salem, always a pleasure," he replied in a cool voice. He stood beside one of the chairs to Salem's right and waited for the others to arrive.

They didn't have to wait long before a sound like thunder heralded the arrival of their next member. A shimmering white portal appeared to Salem's left, closing with another thunderclap as soon as its owner stepped through. He was a giant of a man, standing even taller than Hazel with musculature to match. He wore black armor that left his arms and face exposed. His skin was the color and texture of granite, his features were harsh, and his eyes burned with crimson fire.

"Darkseid," Salem said, inclining her head to the ruler of Apokolips.

"Salem," he greeted with a voice that was deep and commanding, but still surprisingly human for one who looked so monstrous. Before any more words could be exchanged, the fourth member of their circle appeared.

A humming sound filled the chamber as he appeared in a flash of golden light. This teleport was crude compared to the technology of Apokolips, but it still managed to place an adult Thoroughbred directly where he wished to be. His coat was a dark chestnut color with a white blaze down the middle of his face. The horse took his place standing to Salem's left near the foot of the table and nickered in greeting.

"Good to see you, Bad Horse," replied Salem.

The final member of the League came moments later, arriving last as his ego demanded. He Planeswalked into the room with a rush of air and a loud popping sound. His golden scales sparkled in the candlelight even as his massive wings blocked most of the windows on the right side of the chamber. Curved horns swept up from his brow, and a bronze egg hovered in between them. These horns would have scraped the ceiling if he stood upright, but he was perfectly content to coil himself to fit into the room, as if to show that it was lowering himself to even be there. The Elder Dragon's strangely human face smiled at his assembled partners.

"Greetings, my friends," he hissed.

"Nicol Bolas," Salem replied with a slight bow. "My partners, welcome to Remnant." She sat in the throne at the head of the table while Darkseid and Haliax took the seats normally used by Tyrian and Hazel. Nicol Bolas lowered his body a bit more, and Bad Horse remained standing as was typical of his species.

Salem felt the same twinge of apprehension that she always did around such a powerful assemblage of beings, but she didn't let it show on her face. Were the five of them to fight, she didn't know who would win, but she suspected that it wouldn't be her. Even so, her place in this League was secure. She was the only of them with the knowledge necessary to obtain and use the Relics, and even Bolas' telepathy couldn't glean those secrets from the inky void that was her mind.

That position might become more dangerous once a Relic or two had been obtained. Each of Salem's partners desired one of the Relics, while she needed all four. Darkseid planned to use the Relic of Knowledge to finally solve the Anti-Life Equation. Bolas thought the Relic of Creation could restore the godlike power he had possessed before the Mending. Haliax wanted the Relic of Destruction to annihilate the lands that he had once dedicated himself to protecting. Meanwhile, Bad Horse's designs for the Relic of Choice eluded even Salem's full understanding.

But at the moment, other problems presented themselves.

"I won't waste words," Salem began. "The Haven operation was a failure. Ozpin and his subordinates arrived to distract Hazel, while Raven Branwen deceived Cinder with a decoy Spring Maiden and defeated her in battle."

"Your protégé was beaten?" asked Haliax. "With all the effort you've put into her, that might be more of a loss than the immediate failure to obtain the Relic at Haven. Is she dead?"

"I have not become aware of a new Fall Maiden," replied Salem. "I believe Cinder may still be alive, though I'm not sure of her status. Additionally, Raven opened the vault before fleeing Haven. Ozpin now possesses the Relic."

Bad Horse whinnied a question.

"For now they're still in Mistral," answered Salem. "But with Lionheart and most of the kingdom's best Huntsmen dead, they are unlikely to stay there. Atlas is the only place left they will expect to be secure." She noted Bolas grin at that.

"If they are moving the Relic, then we should strike while they are in transit," suggested Darkseid.

"Agreed," confirmed Salem. "Tyrian and Hazel-"

"No," interjected Haliax. "Your servants have had their chance, and I am done waiting. The Chandrian will hunt them down and take the Relic from them."

Salem was surprised at his insistence. Haliax was the only one of their members who had been born with a human lifespan and later obtained immortality. He had always struck her as patient and cautious, but it seemed even he had his limits.

"Ozpin will be there," she warned.

"His body is new and weak," countered Haliax. "I will kill him easily. Along with the silver-eyed girl."

The others nodded in agreement, and eventually Salem relented.

"Very well, but be on your guard." Eager to get the conversation back under her control, she turned to face Bolas. "How are things in Atlas proceeding?"

The dragon grinned. "Don't you already know? The kingdom has closed its borders. Ironwood is jumping at shadows, seeing enemies everywhere he looks. His specialists are the only ones he still trusts. And one of those specialists..." He turned to face Darkseid.

"The Winter Maiden is ready," confirmed the New God. "Granny Goodness has broken her and remade her as our slave. She will convince Ironwood to lead her to the vault, and then she will take the Relic for us."

"Excellent," said Salem, before turning to the end of the table. "What of Vacuo?"

Bad Horse neighed in reply.

"That's good to hear, but with Cinder potentially dead we'll need a new plan for the Summer Maiden," Darkseid pointed out.

The thoroughbred whinnied.

"Really?" asked Salem with a grin. "How did you manage that?"

Bad Horse snorted. The table was silent for a moment before Bolas let out a hissing chuckle.

"Impressive," the dragon whispered.

"So then only the Beacon Relic remains," Haliax said.

"It's only a matter of time before my Grimm locate it," Salem assured her partners.

"Which brings us back to Cinder…" Darkseid sneered.

"Yes, we'll need to determine her status," admitted Salem.

"I can retrieve her," offered Bolas, sounding almost bored. The others turned to look at him. "My part in the plan for Atlas is finished, and it's not like I'd have any trouble infiltrating Haven."

Salem nodded in agreement, despite the apparent absurdity of the claim. She knew that invisibility was the least of what Bolas could accomplish with his magic.

"If she's alive, I'll bring her back here," continued the dragon. "If she's dead, I'll send someone to look for the new Fall Maiden. And if she's somewhere in-between, well necromancy can do wonderful things for the half-dead."

"Then it seems our victory is at hand," declared Salem. "Soon the Relics, and the power to reshape worlds, will belong to us."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love villain meetings, so writing one with all my favorites was a ton of fun.
> 
> I provided enough information to make the characters I included easily Google-able, and I definitely recommend checking them out if you're not familiar. Dr Horrible is a lot of fun, and The Name of the Wind is one of the best books I've ever read.
> 
> Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!


	26. A STRQ Duel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In honor of Valentine's Day, we had a bunch of romance-related prompts this week. The prompt for this was "A duel between two characters for another character's love."

Qrow and Tai stood in the center of the training hall, both panting heavily. The screen on the back wall of the room showed that both boys' Auras were nearing the red.

Sizing his opponent up one last time, Qrow charged forwards. Just a few steps away from his opponent, he abruptly shifted Harbinger from sword form to scythe form and launched into a sweeping slash. However, Tai saw this coming and ducked underneath the slash while stepping closer to his opponent. Rising out of the crouch, he hit Qrow in the chin with an uppercut, knocking the scythe wielder off his feet and leaving him sprawled on his back.

A buzzer sounded through the training hall, indicating that Qrow's Aura had fallen into the red. Tai had managed to pull out a win against one of the Branwens.

"Great job, Tai!" called Summer from the bleachers. "Both of you looked really good that fight."

"It was fine," Raven said noncommittally from her seat beside Summer. "A little early to be getting that tired if you ask me."

"Yeah, well we didn't," Qrow pointed out. He took Tai's offered hand and let himself be pulled to his feet.

"How much longer do we have the room reserved?" asked Raven.

Summer glanced at the clock on the wall. "Ten minutes."

"Just enough time for our match," said Raven as she stood and grabbed her weapon.

"Sure thing," agreed Summer as she followed suit, picking up her twin scimitars from the bench beside her.

Summer had been expecting this. A week ago she'd managed to finally beat Raven in a sparring match, bringing their record to seventeen to one in the Branwen girl's favor. This of course was completely unacceptable to Raven. All week she had been pestering Summer about reserving the training hall again, but then once they had the space she had waited until the end of their allotted time to challenge Summer.

Raven was capable of being a good teammate, but Summer hated how absurdly competitive she was. And it was almost always directed at her. Raven's record against Qrow was almost even, and she never sulked about that. And she actually started taking Tai's advances a bit more seriously after he finally managed a win against her. But she couldn't accept losing to her team leader any more than she could accept the fact that Summer even  _was_  the team leader.

As Summer was getting ready for the fight to begin, Raven motioned her to come closer. Hoping for, but not expecting, an offer of peace, Summer lowered her weapons and walked over to her teammate.

"If I win, stop making eyes at Tai," muttered Raven, low enough that the boys wouldn't hear.

Summer's eyes widened. She tried to come up with a suitable reply to that, but found that her brain didn't seem to be functioning at the moment.

"S-sorry," she eventually managed to stammer out.

"Don't apologize," snapped Raven. "Just stop." Then she smirked. "Of course, if you win, I'll give you a chance with him."

Summer stared at her teammate, trying to process what had just been said to her.

"I am not fighting you over Tai," she said firmly.

"That'll make this pretty easy," Raven chuckled as she drew her sword. Without waiting for a signal to start the fight, she lunged at her team leader.

Summer backpedaled as she raised one scimitar to block the attack. Raven immediately recovered from the lunge and launched into a fierce but carefully controlled sequence of attacks. Summer was forced to keep retreating and use both of her blades to defend.

_Dammit, I can't let her drive me back like this!_

Summer carefully watched each of Raven's attacks, and when she saw her opportunity she stepped inside of her teammate's guard and directed a slash at her face. Raven only just managed to weave out of the way of the scimitar.

Raven jumped backwards and sheathed her sword. She flicked the switch on her scabbard to switch to a different Dust-infused blade. In one motion she drew her sword again and unleashed a razor-sharp blast of wind at her opponent.

Without hesitating, Summer sprinted towards the attack, throwing herself over it at the last second. The wind sent her cloak billowing out around her as she soared above it.

Summer resumed her sprint as soon as she landed, sparing a millisecond to enjoy the surprised look on Raven's face. She closed the distance to her opponent and lashed out with both scimitars. Raven blocked one, but the other pierced her guard to strike her in the chest, damaging her Aura.

Rage twisted the Branwen girl's face as she stepped away from her opponent. Summer tried to keep the distance close, but she couldn't stop Raven from slashing her sword upwards to unleash another blast of wind. Summer spun out of the way of the attack, ending up at Raven's right side.

The spin forced her to take her eyes off her opponent for a moment, so she didn't see Raven grab a handful of her white cloak. But she had full view as her teammate brought her sword down.

Summer stared in shock, her mouth hanging open, as the lower half of her beloved cloak fell to the floor of the training hall. She slowly tore her gaze from the cloth to meet her opponent's crimson gaze.

"Why would you-" breathed Summer before Raven cut her off with a pommel smash to the nose. Even with her Aura nearly full, pain blossomed across her face.

Summer backpedaled a few steps before recovering and throwing herself at Raven with a cry of anger. She lashed out again and again with her scimitars, but Raven easily warded off the wild attacks. Barely a handful of second passed before Raven found an opening and knocked Summer off her feet with a vicious chop.

Coming back to herself, Summer glanced at the screen to see that her Aura was just above the red. She then brought her gaze back to Raven, who was advancing on her fallen foe. The Branwen sister lifted her sword over her head and took one last step towards her team leader…

Only to find that her legs had become entangled in the cloth she had cut from Summer's cloak. As she continued forward, she tripped and collapsed onto her side, dropping her weapon in her surprise.

Summer stared at her fallen opponent for a moment before shaking her head.

_I'm not winning like that._

As discretely as possible, the team leader pressed the tip of one of her scimitars into her thigh until she heard the buzzer sound the end of the match. She rose to her feet and moved to help Raven, but the Branwen girl was already moving.

She tore the cloth from around her legs and threw it aside, springing to her feet an instant later. Ignoring Summer completely, she advanced towards the bleachers with her sword in hand.

"What the HELL was that?" screamed Raven. Tai moved in front of her, trying to calm her down, but she shoved him out of the way and pointed her sword at Qrow. "You used your Semblance on me? ME?"

"Yeah, I did," Qrow shouted back, rising to his feet. "And you know what, I'll do worse if you don't stop acting like such a cunt!"

"What did you just say to me?" growled Raven as she stepped closer and held her blade up to her brother's neck.

"HEY!" shouted Summer, her voice raised enough to make even Raven flinch back. It had taken more than a year, but she'd finally managed to develop a 'leader tone' that the rest of Team STRQ respected. "That's enough. Let's get cleaned up and head back to the dorm. The next team will be coming in soon."

Raven sneered, but she backed away from Qrow and sheathed her sword. As her teammates gathered their belongings in silence, Summer picked the torn remains of her cloak up off the ground. Her hand trembled slightly as she held the white cloth, anger at Raven fighting with her need to keep some measure of peace on the team. What remained on her shoulders barely reached down to her waist.

"If you want I can fix that for you," offered Tai from across the room. Summer glanced at him in surprise.

"You can sew?" asked Qrow with a smirk.

"Yeah," replied Tai cheerfully. "My mom taught me. I'm pretty sure Team VERD has a set I could borrow."

"That would be great," Summer said, beaming. Then she thought of something. "Actually, do you think you could teach me how to sew?"

"Yeah, if you want," answered Tai.

Raven glared at Summer. When Tai and Qrow weren't looking, she mouthed "I won."

Summer just shrugged in reply, trying not to let any smugness show on her face. It wasn't easy. She was really looking forward to spending that time with Tai.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, there was no way I was just going to write about two characters fighting and the winner getting laid. That's lame.
> 
> And just in case anyone was still unclear, I don't much care for Raven.


	27. Cinder's Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I decided to write another one this week. The prompt for this was "Cinder refuses to admit she's in love with [insert character]."

Cinder sat on the bed in her dorm room at Beacon, staring at the two faces on her scroll. A girl made of metal and a girl who could control polarity, it would be all too easy.

Cinder had noticed Pyrrha Nikos the first time she had laid eyes on her, and the more she learned the more fascinated she became. Thoughts of the "Invincible Girl" occupied every idle moment. She was strong, intelligent, and beautiful, perhaps as much so as Cinder herself. Among all of the students gathered here for the Vytal Festival, Pyrrha was the only one who was at all noteworthy.

That was why Cinder was so puzzled by the girl's apparent infatuation with her worthless team leader. That blond idiot wasn't remotely deserving of a moment of Pyrrha's attention, let alone her affection. It irritated Cinder to no end.

She shook her head to clear it of such thoughts. Who Pyrrha took an interest in was irrelevant. All that mattered was the plan. And the Invincible Girl was going to play an integral part in that plan; Cinder was certain of it. The world had placed this goddess of a woman in Cinder's path to be a steppingstone on the way to her destiny.

When Amber had proved to be so disgustingly average, Cinder had worried it was a sign that she herself might never achieve true greatness. But now, with real perfection as the instrument of her victory, Cinder knew that she would become everything Salem hoped. She would obtain the Maidens' powers, seize the Relics, and bring down Ozpin once and for all.

This justified her constant thoughts of Pyrrha, didn't it? Why wouldn't Cinder's mind occupy itself with this tool, this sign of her ascension? She was obsessing over the achievement of her destiny. Nothing more.

* * *

Cinder hurried through the underground passageway beneath Beacon in pursuit of Ozpin, certain that she was about to obtain the other half of her power.

When she saw Pyrrha being led away from the battle by Ozpin, she knew that she was finally going to learn Amber's location. Ozpin was careful to cover his tracks when he visited the vault, but there was no time for that now. The fact that he allowed the useless blond boy to come with them was proof of that. Cinder followed easily, and now found herself before the Aura transfer machine that she had learned of from Ironwood's scroll.

The transfer process had already begun, orange light filling the machine. From inside her pod, Pyrrha cried out in pain. For some inexplicable reason, her screams filled Cinder with rage at the one who put her there.

"I'm… so sorry," she heard Ozpin say.

Without thinking, Cinder summoned her bow and aimed an arrow at his back, wanting to end his hypocrisy.

_No, that will come once the power is mine._

Cinder turned her aim towards Amber and loosed her arrow into the helpless girl's chest. Ozpin and the blond boy turned to face her, expressions of shock on their face. The orange light that filled the machine went out, first draining back into Amber before exploding from her body to enter the new Fall Maiden.

Power surged through Cinder's veins. She was lifted off the ground by its intensity as fire danced around her. She could  _feel_  her eyes glowing with golden flame. The burning hunger that had filled her for close to a year finally abated, and she was whole.

_This is it. It's finally mine! Thank you, Pyrrha._

The blond boy ran towards her with his sword raised.

"Stay back!" cried Ozpin, but the fool ignored him.

With no more effort than it took to think of it, Cinder summoned an explosion to knock the boy away. She found she took a certain joy in hurting the object of Pyrrha's affections. She dismissed this as her reveling in her newfound power, and reminded herself to stay focused. There was still a dangerous enemy in front of her.

Then Pyrrha cried out the boy's name, and it was like a knife in Cinder's heart. Pyrrha used her Semblance to tear the door off her pod and hurl it at Cinder, but the Fall Maiden's power was more than sufficient to defend herself.

_Dammit, why do you care? You're done with her, she doesn't matter anymore. It doesn't matter if she cares about the boy. It doesn't matter if she hates you. It doesn't matter!_

As Cinder wrestled with her emotions, Pyrrha threw herself from the pod and summoned her weapons. She charged towards Cinder, but Ozpin held her back.

"Take Jaune and get out of here," ordered the headmaster. "Find Glynda, Ironwood, Qrow! Bring them here right away. The tower cannot fall!"

"But I can help," protested Pyrrha.

Ozpin looked her in the eyes before speaking again. "You'll only get in the way."

After a moment's hesitation, Pyrrha rushed to Jaune's side and helped him to his feet. They ran past Cinder towards the exit of the vault.

She knew she could have stopped them. It would have been effortless. But there was no need, and Cinder found she preferred to let them leave. The feeling confused her.

But as Cinder faced Ozpin, she felt no conflict there. Her every instinct screamed at her that it was time to hurt him, to kill him. Her destiny was at hand, and that was something she understood perfectly.

* * *

_Give up._

Cinder had thrown those words at enemies before, but usually it was a command or a taunt.

Now it was a prayer, a desperate hope that Pyrrha would see she couldn't win.

This fight should have been nothing to Cinder. Pyrrha had been a tool to achieve her objective, killing her would mean tying up a loose end. It would also be another chance to test her powers, exhausted as they were from the fight with Ozpin.

And yet Cinder found herself so distracted, so desperate for the fight to end without blood, that the girl managed to get in a few good hits against the Fall Maiden. If Pyrrha were a bit more ruthless, if she had killed intentionally before, Cinder might very well be dead.

But with the Grimm Dragon's intervention, the tower was shattered and the headmaster's office left open to the air. Cinder hovered over the wreckage, looking down at Pyrrha's prone form.

_Give up. Please._

But the Invincible Girl refused. She leapt to her feet and gestured with her arm. A massive piece of metal lifted off the floor and flew towards Cinder. Distracted as she was, Cinder took the blow and was thrown to the ground.

_No, you can't let this happen! Overwhelm her, make her see that it's hopeless!_

Summoning the Maiden's power, Cinder exploded from the wreckage and soared into the air. She hurled blasts of fire from her palms to strike Pyrrha. The girl avoided the first two, but made the mistake of trying to defend against the third with her shield. The intensity of the fire knocked her off her feet.

Cinder smiled.

_She has to see it now! She can't win._

But then Pyrrha's shield came hurtling through the fire. Cinder forced herself to keep smiling as she batted it away with her bare hand.

Then her mouth fell open in surprise as she saw the massive gears from the clock tower floating through the air, suspended by the power of Pyrrha's Semblance. Awed by the power of this goddess among women, Cinder couldn't even think of defending herself as Pyrrha's shield and one of the gears knocked her to the floor of the tower. A moment later, the other gears crashed on top of her, burying her.

Rage boiled up inside of Cinder. No one did this to her. She was the Fall Maiden, and she would not allow herself to be beaten.

With a cry of anger, she summoned an explosion of flame that launched the gears away from her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw one of them strike Pyrrha, knocking the girl against a wall and breaking her Aura.

Cinder stood and summoned her bow to her hand. She knocked an arrow and aimed at Pyrrha just as she rose to her feet. She loosed her arrow in the same second that Pyrrha threw her shield. The girl's aim was perfect, and the projectiles collided in midair.

That is, they would have if Cinder were not the Fall Maiden. With an effort of will, she made her arrow disintegrate before it hit the shield, reforming a moment later and continuing on its path towards Pyrrha. The arrow struck the Invincible Girl in the ankle, causing her to fall to her knees and eliciting a cry of pain.

That cry broke through Cinder's anger, leaving her with nothing but regret. No matter how she tried, Cinder couldn't bring herself to wish any more harm on Pyrrha.

Cinder watched as Pyrrha tried to rise to her feet, only to collapse again. Every cry she let out as she struggled was echoed by a stab of pain in the Fall Maiden's heart. The fight was over, but Pyrrha was still trying.

_Twist the knife._

Cinder hesitated.

_Do it! It's what you would do to any other opponent! Why should this girl be different?_

"It's unfortunate that you were promised a power that was never truly yours," Cinder said as she circled in front of Pyrrha, forcing herself to smile. She knelt down in front of the girl and placed a hand on her cheek, lifting her face to lock eyes with her.

_Her eyes… they're so much prettier in person._

A part of Cinder wanted to stay there, staring into those eyes, fingers resting on the cheek of the most beautiful girl she had ever seen.

"But take comfort in knowing that I will use it in ways you could never have imagined."

And still there was a touch of defiance on Pyrrha's face as she looked into the Fall Maiden's eyes. She was no fool; she knew she couldn't win this fight. But she refused to let the thought of defeat consume her. Cinder felt her admiration for the girl grow even more.

_I could just leave. If she refuses to run then I'll just go. My objectives are all complete, there's no reason for me to stay. I could even take her to safety myself! She doesn't have to-_

"Do you believe in destiny?" Pyrrha asked, her voice barely above a whisper, her eyes staring into Cinder's soul.

Cinder's smile disappeared as something inside of her snapped. She knew now what her feelings for Pyrrha were. They were a test of her resolve. To spare this girl would be to give her power over Cinder ahead of even her mission for Salem. She could not allow that.

Because she believed in destiny.

"Yes."

Cinder stood and took a step away from Pyrrha. She slowly summoned her bow and drew back an arrow. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she blinked them away. Forcing her arms to stop trembling, she loosed the arrow into Pyrrha's heart.

The girl gasped, and desperately tried to draw breath. She reached a hand towards the injury for a moment, but then she stopped struggling and her arms fell to her sides. She would have collapsed if Cinder had not stepped forward and placed a hand on the side of her head.

Cinder's heart felt liked it had been ripped in two. She'd never known pain like this before. A part of her hated Pyrrha for bringing her this pain, and another part hated herself for feeling this way. She sensed the Dragon land on the tower behind her. She knew that if her despair became too great, it would overcome Salem's blessing and the Grimm would attack her. But she couldn't stop these feelings! She just wanted it all to…

_Disappear._

The Maiden's power leapt at that thought. Cinder watched as Pyrrha's body glowed with the light of a dying ember before crumbling to ash on the wind. Her circlet fell to the ground at Cinder's feet, the only thing left of the Invincible Girl.

Cinder heard a scream of despair and jerked her head to the side to see Ruby Rose, her eyes aglow with impossibly bright light. Its silver radiance expanded outwards to engulf the top of the tower and pierce the night sky.

"WHAT?" cried Cinder. Beside her, the Grimm Dragon roared in pain at the appearance of its natural enemy.

And Cinder felt the same agony coursing through her. It felt like her entire being was on fire: body, mind and soul. She tried to scream, but it was washed away by the unbearable pain.

And yet there was a part of her that was grateful to the silver-eyed girl. A part of her embraced the pain and the oblivion in might bring with it.

A part of Cinder knew that she deserved this for killing the most perfect girl to ever walk the face of Remnant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this because I wanted that scene to hurt Cinder as much as it hurt the rest of us. I hope I succeeded.


	28. Weiss has Something to Confess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Weiss has to confess something to the rest of Team RWBY... specifically about Qrow." Warning, ridiculousness ahead.

Yang lay on the couch in the living room of the house in Mistral, still feeling physically and emotionally exhausted from the battle that had taken place at Haven the previous night. Ruby was reading a weapons magazine while leaning against her sister, while Blake, Sun, Jaune, and Oscar were sprawled out on the other chairs around the room. The house was a bit crowded with everyone they had picked up at Haven, but for the moment everyone was too tired to complain.

Yang was completely zoning out when the front door opened and Weiss hurried in. She and Qrow had left half an hour ago to pick up groceries, Qrow being the one with the money and Weiss to pick out some slightly higher class food.

"Hey Weiss," Yang called. "Where's the food?" It wouldn't have surprised Yang to learn that her uncle had run off to some bar, but it was strange that Weiss was coming back empty-handed.

Weiss didn't answer right away. She ran over to stand in front of Yang and Ruby with a slightly nervous look on her face. That was when Yang noticed that Weiss was holding something behind her back.

"Listen," Weiss began slowly, her eyes fixed on her shoes. "Something happened while we were getting the food, and, um, there's something I need to tell you guys."

Ruby set her magazine down, and both sisters sat upright to look at their teammate.

"What is it?" asked Ruby.

"It's about your uncle…" Weiss continued, still staring at the floor. "We were shopping, and we started talking about my sister and, well… I killed him."

Yang's mouth fell open. For a moment her mind went completely blank, but then she sighed as she realized it was a joke. Weiss's completely serious expression had gotten her for a second, but she had to be kidding. It was far from the kind of joke that Yang would have expected from the former heiress, but maybe that was what made it work.

Still, with all the life-or-death situations they'd been in lately, it didn't seem very funny to Yang. She opened her mouth to tell Weiss off, but Ruby spoke up first.

"Weeeeeeiiiisssss," she groaned. "Seriously?"

Yang frowned. Even if Ruby was playing along with the joke, that was a weird reaction. She sounded exasperated; as if Weiss had said that she threw out a magazine she wasn't done reading rather than admitting to killing their uncle.

"I know, I'm so sorry," pleaded Weiss, finally meeting Ruby's eyes. Guilt was written all over her face. If Yang hadn't already known that Weiss was a pretty good actor, she would have started to get worried.

From across the room, Blake sighed. "What happened this time?"

_This time?_

"Well, we were talking about my sister, and Qrow kept badmouthing her," Weiss answered nervously. "I was starting to get really annoyed, so I took out Myrtenaster and started waving it in his face. Then I tripped and, well, kind of stabbed him through the eye."

"Wow, I never thought you were the clumsy one," Sun chided from his seat beside Blake.

"I never really liked the guy," Jaune put in. "But I wasn't exactly planning on killing him."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Weiss insisted. "I just tripped."

"Weiss, this isn't funny anymore," Yang said severely.

"I know, I'm so, so sorry," Weiss repeated, turning to face Yang again. "It was an accident, I swear."

As Weiss spoke, her hand came out from behind her back to reveal her weapon. The end of the blade was covered in blood that was just starting to dry. Stuck on the tip was a small piece of what could have been brain matter.

Yang stared at her teammate, finding it impossible to form a coherent thought. This was going way too far for a joke. Was Weiss… actually serious?

"I can't believe this," said Ruby. But she didn't sound distraught or even sad. She just sounded annoyed. "Weiss, we talked about this."

"Wait, you did?" asked Yang, standing up from her seat. She couldn't begin to wrap her head around her sister's reaction to this.

"This can't keep happening, Weiss," Blake scolded. She was acting even stranger. Where Ruby at least seemed irritated, Blake hardly appeared to care much at all.

"Hold on, what do you mean keep happening?" Yang demanded.

"Well she killed Ilia last night," Sun replied frankly.

Yang shook her head in confusion. "Who?"

"See?" Blake said emphatically. "Yang never even got to meet Ilia!"

Weiss winced and looked down at the floor. "I'm trying, I promise," she muttered.

"And we all appreciate that, Miss Schnee," Ozpin put in through Oscar's body. "But this is beginning to become a real problem. You need to do better."

"Starting to become a problem?" Yang shouted incredulously. "She killed two people!"

"I mean, she's done more than that," Ruby muttered.

"What!?" Yang cried.

"Yeah," said Jaune. "You remember how Team CRDL sent Russel and Skye of all people to the double's round of the tournament? They were going to send Dove, but then  _Weiss_ …" He trailed off and gave the former heiress an irritated glare.

"And you know how Fox has all those scars on his arms?" asked Blake.

"My bad," whispered Weiss.

Yang looked around the room for some sign that they were joking, or even that they understood the gravity of what they were saying. But every one of them had these exasperated looks on their faces, as if Weiss's apparently repeated murders were not a big deal.

That was when it really hit Yang. Qrow was dead. She was never going to see him again. Tears welled up in her eyes as she thought of all the good times she had spent with her uncle, playing video games or hearing his stories that her dad thought she was too young to know about. She tried to remember when the last time she'd told Qrow that she loved him was.

"Weiss, this really needs to stop," Ruby said seriously.

Yang whirled around to face her sister. "How are you not more upset about this?" she screamed, tears pouring down her face.

Ruby blinked in surprise as if Yang were the one being unreasonable. Then a look of concern crossed her face when she saw that her sister was crying.

"Hey, come on," Ruby whispered reassuringly. "It happens. It's just what you have to get used to living with Weiss."

Yang stared at her sister in disbelief. Then she glanced around the room to find similar looks of concern on everyone else's faces. No one seemed to have the slightest idea why she was so sad about the death of her beloved uncle.

_They've all gone crazy._

Yang turned towards the door and began walking slowly towards it, moving her limbs mechanically.

"I… I'm going to try to find my mom."

"Oh, um," Weiss began sheepishly. "That might be difficult."

Yang looked back at her friend to see her eyes glowing with snow-colored fire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Practically everyone else wrote QrowXWinter this week, which I have zero interest in. So I had to do something completely absurd instead. Yang made a surprisingly effective straight man while everyone else took the whole thing in stride.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	29. Tyrian's Tail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Cunning Challenge. The prompt was "Tyrian has an attack of conscience after attacking huntsmen in Mistral, as without his poison gland his sanity slowly returns to him." from AStereotypicalGamer. Have I developed a theme?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel I should put a content warning on this for anyone who's ever dealt with drug abuse. This piece deals with similar ideas.

Tyrian lay on his stomach on a sterile metal table, his eyes shut against the bright light that filled the room. He had to force himself to breathe steadily; he kept catching himself holding his breath in anticipation of the next prodding.

Despite his best efforts, he flinched when a jolt of pain shot from his wound down to the base of his tail and up through his spine.

"Hold still!" snapped Doctor Watts for at least the fourth time in the last ten minutes.

Tyrian was trying his best, but staying still had proved all but impossible for him ever since his injury. He trembled constantly, his muscles in open revolt against him. The shaking was so bad that it often keep him awake late into the night.

But even worse was what was happening inside his head. His mood was all over the place, his downtrodden state sometimes giving way to rage or manic glee with little warning. These episodes were usually brief, leaving him feeling depressed and confused moments later.

He had trouble concentrating as well. Despite what his comrades thought, Tyrian was always laser-focused on whatever task Salem gave him. Even when he mixed business with pleasure, like when he taunted the silver-eyed girl and her team, he had never let anything distract him from his objective.

But now his mind wandered no matter what he was doing. Even when Salem had chastised him for failing to kill Qrow Branwen he'd had to fight to keep his attention fully on her.

Tyrian felt like he was losing his mind. How Watts would laugh at that.

After several more agonizing minutes, the doctor finished his examination. As he was leaving, Watts addressed him.

"Salem wanted to see you when the examination was finished."

Tyrian couldn't stop himself from flinching at the thought of speaking with his mistress again. He nodded in acknowledgment, and left the room as quickly as he could.

Watts twitched his mouth as he watched the Faunus assassin leave. Tyrian usually became irritated when anyone referred to Salem without a title. The fact that he hadn't noticed painted a very poor image of his mental health, to say nothing of all of the twitching.

"It looks like I was right," Watts muttered to himself.

* * *

Tyrian entered the meeting hall to find Salem waiting for him in her throne. He stood at the foot of the table and bowed to her, his eyes scarcely leaving his own feet.

He had always liked this room. This was where Salem gave him his orders and where he returned when they were completed. He had always served her perfectly, and she had always praised him for his successes. But ever since the loss of his tail, this room had become nothing but a reminder of his failure.

Tyrian noticed that Salem was staring at him expectantly and realized that he hadn't said anything as he came in.

"My lady," he said hurriedly. "How may I serve you?"

"Watts has completed his examination?" she asked, irritation obvious in her voice.

"He has, my lady," Tyrian answered. "He said he had everything he needed to complete my new tail."

"Good," replied his mistress, tenting her fingers. "It will take him some time to complete the prosthetic. In the meantime…" Salem's eyes narrowed and Tyrian withered under her gaze. "You need to prove to me that you are still of some use."

Tyrian kept his gaze fixed on his shoes. When he'd returned from Mistral empty-handed, she had merely called him a disappointment, and even that had nearly torn his heart in two. Once she learned that he'd failed to even kill Qrow Branwen, she'd questioned if there was any reason at all to keep him around.

Nothing scared Tyrian more than the thought of Salem casting him aside. She had given his life purpose, and without her he would have no reason to live.

Tyrian realized that several seconds had passed in silence.

"Of course, my lady, anything to prove myself to you."

Salem glared at him. "Ruby Rose and Qrow Branwen are now within the city of Mistral. Striking at them there would be unwise, especially with the attack on Haven coming soon. Instead, you will continue to target Mistral's Huntsmen."

The assassin nodded. "As you wish, my lady." This, at least, was something he could handle.

"With the CCT down, you will need to get close to the city to contact Leonardo," Salem continued. Then she waved a hand dismissively. "Go. And don't return until you've brought me the head of a Huntsman. I need proof of your success."

Tyrian flinched at the rebuke, but nodded in agreement. "It will be done." He bowed and exited the room.

* * *

Tyrian stalked through the forests of Mistral, knowing that his target was close. Lionheart had given him the details of all of the currently active missions overseen by the Mistral council, and Tyrian had chosen one that would yield rapid results.

Hiding in the bushes beside the road, the assassin caught his first glimpse of the target returning from his mission.

Robin Drake was a tall, thin Huntsman in his mid-thirties with dark grey hair. He wore a long black cloak, and Tyrian could see the end of his weapon poking out from beneath it. His shirt was open to reveal the red feathers that covered his chest.

Tyrian didn't know if the man bared his chest like that as a matter of pride, or if it was just uncomfortable to wear clothing over his feathers. Avian Faunus were rare, nearly as rare as arachnid Faunus. Most humans imagined all Faunus as having mammalian characteristics like furry ears or tails. Some fetishized these traits, sexualizing these Faunus instead of ostracizing them and thinking themselves progressive. But as for non-mammal Faunus, they were regarded with disgust, sometimes even by other Faunus.

Tyrian had been told all of this by a spider Faunus he'd met on a mission to Menagerie. When he realized that the woman didn't have the information he needed, he'd poisoned her and left her body in the desert for the beasts.

_She had a daughter, didn't she? I never considered what would happen to the girl._

Tyrian shook his head to clear it. Why was he thinking about that now? He needed to focus on the target in front of him.

As he returned his gaze to Drake, the Huntsman turned in his direction and drew his weapon from his cloak. It was like an unusual chakram or shuriken. A pair of slightly curved blades, each three feet long, protruded from the handle of the weapon, forming a Z shape. Three Dust crystals were set into the base of each blade. Drake's eyes scanned the forest as he held the weapon out in front of him.

"Who's there?" demanded the Huntsman.

_He heard me moving just now! I'm an idiot!_

Seeing little more use for stealth, Tyrian sprang out of the bushes and sprayed machine gun fire from his gauntlets at Drake. The Huntsman dived out of the way and simultaneously hurled his chakram at Tyrian. The assassin twisted his body in midair, the blades coming close enough to tear off the end of his coat.

As Tyrian landed, he heard the sound of a hurricane behind him. He cast a quick glance over his shoulder to see the chakram surrounded by a windstorm. The gale blew the weapon into a turn and then sent it flying towards Tyrian's back. He rolled out of the way at the last second, and the wind carried the chakram back to Drake's hand.

Lionheart had given Tyrian the details of Drake's Semblance. After he touched a piece of Dust, he could control it from a distance as if it were still sitting in the palm of his hand. Tyrian could expect plenty more surprises from that chakram.

_He's a Haven graduate. Lionheart might have been the one who taught him to use Dust. How ironic._

Tyrian pushed that musing from his mind as Drake pointed the chakram at him again. The Huntsman's eyes fell to the scorpion tail that had been revealed when the Faunus' coat was torn.

"Who are you?" asked Drake. "I'm no friend to the White Fang, but I never thought they would send an assassin after me."

Tyrian snorted. "My name is Tyrian, and the White Fang didn't send me. They are nothing but pawns in my master's scheme. No, you are to die simply for the crime of protecting Mistral."

Drake frowned in confusion, then he drew back his weapon.

"You'll explain what you're talking about after I've beaten you." The Huntsman threw his chakram at Tyrian, activating the wind Dust again to send in rushing forwards on its course.

The assassin dashed forward to meet the weapon. At the last second, as the blades came within inches of his face, Tyrian spun out of the way and reached a hand out to catch the weapon from the air. Just as his fingers were reaching towards the handle of the weapon, lightning arced from the Dust set into it, shocking him. Tyrian withdrew his hand with a yelp of pain, tripping and falling onto his side as the electricity caused a spasm in his legs.

_Should have seen that coming! Stupid!_

Tyrian rolled to his feet, then threw himself to the side an instant before the chakram passed through the spot where he'd been standing. He turned to face Drake as the flying weapon returned to the Huntsman's hand.

"You can always give up you know?" remarked the bird Faunus with a grin. "I mean look at you, you're shaking."

Tyrian had to actually glance down at himself to realize that Drake was right. His hands were trembling, just as they always seemed to since he'd lost his stinger. His mouth fell open.

_I couldn't have caught the weapon even without the lightning. Dammit all!_

Realizing that he would need to be far more careful than usual if he wanted to win this fight, Tyrian refocused on his opponent. He glanced at the chakram and noted the colors of the Dust crystals set into it.

_He won't risk using fire in this forest, so just wind and lightning to worry about. That does give me an idea…_

"So are you giving up then?" asked Drake, and Tyrian realized that the bird Faunus expected an answer to his earlier statement.

"This isn't over until one of us is dead," snarled the assassin.

"So be it," answered Drake solemnly. Then he raised his chakram and hurled it at Tyrian once again.

Tyrian ran forwards before springing into the air, easily clearing the spinning blades. However, wind blew out from the weapon, changing its course to follow the scorpion Faunus. As the chakram neared Tyrian, he lashed out with his gauntlets and knocked it away, moving quickly enough that Drake didn't have time to activate the lightning Dust in the weapon.

The scorpion Faunus landed his jump just a few strides from his opponent. Drake's eyes widened, and he reached out a hand towards his weapon. Guided by the wind, the chakram flew back to its owner's grip. Tyrian waited until it had nearly reached him before raising his gauntlets and opening fire.

Before his injury, Tyrian could have been confident that he would have made this shot. But with his tremor he was forced to put as many bullets in the air as possible and hope for the best. Still, it seemed that luck was on his side as one of his shots struck the fire Dust set into the chakram, causing it to explode.

Drake cried out as the blast knocked him from his feet. Tyrian sprang forwards, leaping onto the fallen Huntsman and raining down blows on his face. He struck again and again with his gauntlets, screaming as he did so, letting out all the anger and frustration that had been building up inside him. Drake tried to struggle, but the assassin had him pinned and in too much pain to fight back.

Tyrian watched carefully for the flash of light signaling that Drake's Aura had broken. When he saw it, he let out a cry of victory and plunged the blades of his gauntlets into the Huntsman's chest.

The assassin met his victim's eyes as the life drained from him. He smiled as he saw the fear in them. In seconds, Robin Drake was dead.

Tyrian breathed in as he waited for it, the rush of victory, the thrill that came with killing. Taking a life in Salem's name always brought him such elation; it was like a drug to him.

But it didn't come. The feeling like electricity coursing through his veins wasn't there. Instead, Tyrian was just left holding the body of the man that he'd murdered.

_I didn't even check if this one had a family._

The thought came out of nowhere, and it hit Tyrian like a hammer blow. He clutched his chest and found that his heart was beating impossibly fast. He gritted his teeth and snarled under his breath.

"I don't  _care._  It doesn't  _matter!_ "

Tyrian stood up and took a step back from the body. He looked down his hands and saw the blades of his weapons covered in blood. His lip curled in disgust that he didn't fully understand.

_It's Faunus blood. Just like mine._

"No!" cried Tyrian aloud. "He's not like me! He's nothing but a pawn for Ozpin. I'm…"

_A pawn for Salem?_

"NO!" screamed Tyrian, falling to his knees and clutching his head, overwhelmed by emotions that didn't make any sense to him. It was like when Salem called him a disappointment, but not quite the same. It was as if his own soul were calling him a failure. Whatever these feelings were, they were strong enough to create a physical pain in his chest that was almost too much to bear.

"What's wrong with me?" sobbed Tyrian as tears began to pour down his cheeks. He collapsed into a ball and stayed there, quietly crying. It was a long time before he felt able to move.

* * *

Watts pushed open the doors of Salem's meeting hall and walked to the foot of the table. His mistress regarded him for a moment before gesturing for him to speak.

"My lady," he began. "In my examination of Tyrian's injury, I believe I have confirmed a theory that I've had since I met him. It's about his venom."

"Explain," commanded Salem, resting her head against her fist.

"It is extremely rare for a Faunus to possess venom," began Watts. "And I am not aware of any example of one whose venom was as potent as Tyrian's. I took a sample of it shortly after meeting him, and even a very small quantity could have severe effects on a person's cognitive function. I believe that Tyrian's unique form of psychosis may be the result of trace amounts of venom leaking into his bloodstream for his entire life."

"I see," replied Salem evenly. "And now that his venom gland is gone, how will this affect his mental state? Do you think he might be cured of his madness?"

"The effects of constant exposure to this venom won't heal overnight. But, over time, anything's possible. More immediate effects of the removal of the venom from his system would likely resemble drug withdrawal. I believe we are already seeing such symptoms."

Salem nodded in agreement, and then lowered her head in contemplation.

"Do you have a solution to this?" she asked after a moment.

Watts smiled. "I believe I do."

* * *

Tyrian pushed open the front gates of Salem's palace and walked slowly into the entrance hall, keeping his head down. A quick glance upwards told him that his mistress was waiting for him in under the skylight in the center of the hallway. Then he returned his gaze to the floor in front of him.

When he was ten steps away from Salem, Tyrian stopped and dropped to one knee. He reached into his pack and brought out an item wrapped in soiled cloth. He unwrapped the severed head and held it out to his queen, his hands shaking as he did so.

Looking at the head sickened Tyrian, though he couldn't understand why. He had delivered far more grisly trophies than this to his mistress and thought nothing of it.

"Who is this?" asked Salem calmly, as if there were nothing unusual about being presented with the severed head of a Faunus.

"Robin Drake, my lady," replied Tyrian, having to fight to keep a tremor from his voice. "A Huntsman of Mistral on his way back from a search-and-destroy mission."

"On his way back?" asked Salem, raising an eyebrow. "So he completed his objective before you killed him?"

Tyrian flinched in surprise. He hadn't even thought of that. It would have benefitted Salem more to kill a Huntsman on the way to a mission, rather than one on the way back. That was the kind of detail he ordinarily noticed.

"Still, you did as I commanded of you," Salem continued before he could answer. "Now, Doctor Watts is waiting for you in his laboratory. Go."

"Yes, my lady," Tyrian replied, rising from his knees and leaving down one of the side hallways. He dropped his gear off in his room before moving on to the doctor's laboratory.

He entered the large chamber without knocking, as he normally did, though this time it was more out of forgetfulness than intentional defiance. He found Doctor Watts seated at his computer, typing rapidly at what was probably computer code, though Tyrian was no expert on such things. Arthur looked up as he heard the Faunus enter.

"Ah, you're back," said the doctor, not remarking on Tyrian's impoliteness. He locked his computer screen and stood, picking up his scroll from the desk and searching for a file on it. "I have something to show you."

"What is it?" asked Tyrian, moving further into the room.

"My design for your new tail," Watts answered, finding the file.

Tyrian's eyes widened in excitement as the doctor's scroll projected an image onto the far wall of the laboratory. It showed a mechanical appendage with a lot of technical specifications and diagrams that the assassin didn't understand. Still, he recognized that the prosthetic was the same shape and general length as his lost limb, with a short blade and what appeared to be a submachinegun built into the end. There was an additional mechanism there too, highlighted in several of the diagrams, though Tyrian couldn't tell what it did.

"It's quite inspired if I do say so myself," Arthur continued. "It has one feature in particular that I think you'll like."

"What's that?" asked Tyrian immediately.

"I've always been fascinated by your venom," Arthur answered. "The fact that your body could create something that potent based on a normal Faunus diet, I just had to see if I could do the same." He turned to make eye contact with Tyrian. "And I succeeded."

The assassin's mouth fell open, and then twisted into a smile. "Truly? That's incredible!"

"Yes," agreed Watts, pointing to the mechanism that Tyrian hadn't recognized. "This will synthesize the venom using only your blood for material. This means that the prosthetic will require surgery to attach or remove, but I think the benefits are worth the inconvenience."

"Absolutely!" cried Tyrian. He was ecstatic at the thought of having his venom back. The toxin his body had produced was the thing that made him uniquely valuable to Salem. That must have been the reason he'd felt so lost ever since that silver-eyed bitch had maimed him. "When will it be ready?"

"It's right over there," Watts replied, pointing to a workbench with a cloth draped over it. Tyrian took a step in that direction, but the doctor held out a hand to block him. "I'm still working on the software, but it should be ready by tomorrow morning. I'll expect you ready for surgery by then."

"Of course," agreed Tyrian immediately. "I'll get myself cleaned up and be ready by then." He turned and departed the lab, practically bouncing off the walls with excitement.

Doctor Watts watched him go and chuckled under his breath. The loss of his venom gland had almost certainly extended Tyrian's life expectancy, and yet he was practically begging for it to be restored. The doctor let out another laugh before returning to his computer.

* * *

Tyrian regained consciousness slowly, but as he shook off the effects of the anesthetic…

He felt incredible.

He stood up from the bed he'd been lying face down in, far quicker than Watts probably would have recommended, and looked down at his new metal limb.

It was heavier than his old tail, but it responded to him perfectly. It twitched back and forth at his mental command, moving slowly or lightning quick as he desired. It felt strange to marvel at a limb doing as it was told, but Tyrian couldn't help but be impressed by the doctor's work.

The Faunus picked a spot on the wall of the operating room and pointed at it. A moment later his tail was embedded in the precise spot that he'd chosen. Then, standing there grinning at his restored perfection, he realized something else.

His hand wasn't shaking.

Tyrian laughed elatedly as he realized just how good he felt. The constant trembling had stopped, and his mind felt far less like it was at war with itself. He felt whole again, in body and mind.

"How does it feel?" asked Watts, entering through the door at the far end of the room.

"Perfect," replied Tyrian sincerely. "Thank you so much."

"Of course," replied Watts with obvious pride in his voice. "Ordinarily I'd tell you to rest, but knowing you you'll ignore me. There are some Beowolves in the entrance hall for you to test it out on."

Tyrian was out the door in an instant, dashing down to the ground floor of the palace. He threw open the doors to the entrance hall, and a dozen red eyes turned to regard him.

The scorpion Faunus flung himself at the Grimm, laughing as he did so. He attacked ferociously, making ample use of his tail to knock the creatures around or bind them. He found that the submachinegun in the prosthetic hadn't been loaded yet, but the blade pierced flesh better than his real stinger ever had.

With each Beowolf that Tyrian brought down he felt more whole. When only one remained, he charged into it and stabbed it with the blade of his tail, pumping venom into its body. As the creature fell, Tyrian's body shook with the rush of the kill, filling him like a drug. This was what he had expected when he killed Drake, and now the feeling was restored to him.

_I'm… I'm me again._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: This one was pretty crazy, and I can't believe it ended up so much longer than my usual submissions. I'm no biologist, and I'm pretty sure a lot of this doesn't entirely make sense, but I thought it made for a good story. Tyrian becomes a lot more sympathetic when you realize that he likely suffers from some form of mental illness and is being manipulated by the queen of all evil.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	30. Blake and Ilia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "There's a breakup, but from the ashes a new relationship is born." Once again I had to take it in an unexpected direction

"What are you doing out here?"

Ilia turned to see Blake approaching the stern of the ocean liner where she was sitting, her legs hanging off the side of the deck. To her left, the sun had just touched the horizon and was painting the sky orange and violet. But with the weather as nice as it was, the deck was likely to remain crowded for at least a few more hours. With the constant drone of the engines irritating for most Faunus, the stern was the one place that they didn't congregate.

"I'll take the noise over the crowd," Ilia replied, returning her gaze to the sea. She was surprised when Blake sat down beside her a moment later. "But, uh, we could go somewhere else if it's bothering you."

Blake shook her head. "It's not too bad." Ilia watched the cat Faunus staring out across the ocean for a moment before leaning against the railing as she'd been doing before her friend arrived.

The two sat in silence for a few minutes before Blake spoke up.

"We never talked," she began uncertainly. "About what you said in that alleyway."

Ilia's eyes widened. She had said a lot of things then. Was Blake talking about…?

"About your feelings for me."

The chameleon Faunus opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She had absolutely no idea what to say in reply. Whenever she'd imagined discussing her feelings with Blake, it had never involved much talking.

"I'm sorry I never noticed."

Ilia raised her head to meet Blake's gaze. She'd wanted to hear those words for so long. Why did they hurt so much now?

"Well… I never told you," the chameleon Faunus managed eventually.

"I could have noticed," Blake insisted softly. "I  _would_  have noticed if I hadn't been so preoccupied."

"With Adam?" whispered Ilia, just loud enough to be heard over the engines.

"Yeah, and the White Fang in general," answered Blake. "I think there's a lot of people I didn't treat as well as I could have then. My parents for one. And of course…" Blake trailed off and shook her head.

Ilia understood. The last couple of years before she'd left the White Fang, Blake had hurt a lot of people, both directly and indirectly. Probably more than Ilia had. At the time it had all seemed worth it…

"The point is that we should have talked about this sooner," Blake continued.

"Is this something you learned at Beacon?" asked Ilia with a forced grin. "How to talk about your feelings?"

She was avoiding the point and she knew it. She was scared of what her friend was going to say to her.

"No," answered Blake with a chuckle. "I wasn't very good at it there either. But this is me trying to be better."

The two Faunus girls met eyes, a fake smile on Ilia's face, the remnants of a laugh on Blake's. They sat there for a minute, then two, their expressions slowly becoming more serious.

Part of Ilia wanted to delay as long as possible. She tried to come up with any way she could to change the subject, but staring into Blake's eyes, knowing what was about to happen, she couldn't think of anything to say. Another part of her wanted to get it over with quickly, to just-

"Ilia, I can't return your feelings. I'm sorry."

There it was, exactly as she'd known it would be. She'd known ever since she'd first seen Blake and Adam in a room together. So she didn't cry, or let her feelings show on her face for even an instant.

But still her entire body turned a deep blue color.

"You don't have to forgive me if you don't want to," said Blake after a moment. "But I hope you will."

"There's nothing to forgive," whispered Ilia, staring at her knees, trying and failing to make her skin change back. "It's not your fault."

Blake shook her head. "It's still up to you."

Ilia lifted her head to meet her friend's eyes and finally allowed some emotion to creep into her voice. "Of course I want to forgive you. You're my best friend."

"Well that's the thing," Blake began slowly. Ilia's eyes widened in surprise and fear as she wondered what was coming now.

"The entire time I've been friends with you, we've had these things hanging over us. The White Fang, Adam, me not knowing about your feelings, it's all been there, and it's always been a part of our friendship." Blake leaned closer to Ilia before continuing. "But I think we're putting all of that behind us. The relationship we had back then is over, but I think now we can make a new one. Hopefully a stronger one."

Ilia smiled. If she was being honest, she wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but it sounded like a good thing. "I'd like that," she replied. That was when she noticed that her skin had returned to its normal hue.

The two Faunus smiled at each other for a moment before Ilia spoke up again. "I'm glad we had this talk, but I could use some time to think right now."

Blake nodded and stood up. The sun had gone down completely by then, but many of the Faunus were still out on deck. Blake turned to go and join them, but said one last thing before leaving.

"I know you'll find someone who makes you happy."

Ilia smiled and nodded, but didn't say anything as Blake left. She sat there for a while longer, staring out at the sea. She wasn't exactly happy, but she had cleared the air with her best friend, and she knew that she was doing the right thing by going to Mistral. That was more than she ever could have said in the White Fang.


	31. The Summer Maiden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt this week was "Any male character who is chosen to be one of the 'Maidens.'" Of course I went with an OC, this is me we're talking about.

Robin hopped out of the shower and began toweling himself off as quickly as he could. He wasn't late for his meeting with the headmaster yet, but he would be if he didn't hurry.

The headmaster hadn't told him exactly what the meeting was about, but it wasn't hard for Robin to guess. After all, it wasn't every day a person discovered he had two Semblances. If he'd been asked a week ago, Robin would have said it was impossible.

Robin finished drying off and dressed himself in his Atlas uniform. He was about to rush out of the bathroom with plenty of time to spare when he glanced at the mirror for a second too long. The Huntsman in training stopped dead in his tracks and groaned under his breath. He knew he had to hurry, but he'd seen it now, and he wouldn't be able to forget about it.

_Stubble._

There it was staring back at him in the mirror, sitting there on his face making him look all scruffy. It wasn't even the right color, being more burgundy compared to the scarlet hair that nearly reached his shoulders. It grew inconsistently too, leaving a few spots on his face bare while other parts were notably darkened by it.

Robin usually shaved twice a day. His teammates on Team PRPL insisted that it wasn't so bad, but he couldn't stand the way he looked with any facial hair.

Robin reached for his electric razor, knowing that he was going to make himself late. Then he had a different idea. It was probably stupid. He'd only just learned he had a second Semblance, trying to do something so precise with it before he'd had any real practice wasn't likely to work. On the other hand, his Aura was full, so he wasn't going to hurt himself.

_This'll be awesome if it does work._

Robin leaned towards the mirror and stared at the stubble on his face. He activated his Aura and held the image of what he wanted in his mind. He concentrated for a moment, and the hair on his face burst into flames.

Robin's eyes widened in surprise at his success. It looked like he had a beard made of fire. His Aura had been ready to protect him from burning himself, but the amazing thing was that it didn't seem like he needed it. The fire didn't even feel hot. Robin had heard that some people's Semblances were incapable of hurting them. Maybe his new Semblance was like that.

Robin frowned and made eye contact with himself in the mirror. For a second he thought he'd seen some of the fire surrounding his eyes. That would be bad. He didn't want to burn off his eyelashes.

Suddenly, Robin noticed the smell of burnt hair filling his nostrils. The fire around his face immediately went out as he began coughing.

_Crap. Didn't think of that._

Robin waved his hand in front of his nose to clear the smell. When he stopped coughing, he regarded himself in the mirror, and found that his face was completely clean-shaven. He smiled and hurried out the door.

He arrived at the training hall at nine exactly, just when General Ironwood had asked him to be there. The massive room was empty of students, which surprised Robin a bit. Even on a Saturday morning there was usually at least one team practicing here. Had the headmaster reserved the entire hall for this?

The headmaster stood in the center of the room, wearing his crisp, white general's uniform, along with a man who Robin didn't recognize. He had messy silver hair and shaded wire-rim glasses. He wore a dark suit with a green shit underneath. He carried a cane with an unusual silver handle.

"Hello Sir," Robin greeted, a bit nervously, as he entered the room. He hadn't realized that this was a big enough deal to warrant clearing the entire training hall, or that there would be someone else observing. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting."

"You're right on time," Ironwood assured. "Robin Grau, this is Professor Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon Academy. He wanted to see the new ability that you've developed."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Ozpin said, holding out a hand.

"Nice to meet you too," Robin replied, gently shaking the offered hand. He smiled anxiously. "You didn't come all the way from Vale just to see me, did you?"

Professor Ozpin chuckled. "No, I had other business to take care of in Atlas. General Ironwood simply mentioned that you had developed a second Semblance, and I thought I might take a look at that while I was here. I hope you don't mind."

"Of course not," Robin answered, though he wasn't entirely sure he meant it. Looking into the professor's eyes, he was sure the man was lying. Whatever else he was doing in Atlas we incidental, he had come for this. Robin didn't know how to feel about that.

"Then let's get started," General Ironwood said. "Could you please demonstrate your original Semblance for Professor Ozpin first?"

"Certainly," replied Robin with a smile. This at least he felt confident about.

Robin backed away from the headmasters and walked over to one of the walls of the training hall. He jumped as high as he could and turned his body in midair so that his back was to the ground. He activated his Semblance, his Aura flashing red as he did so, and fell sideways, landing feet first on the wall. He stood upright at a ninety degree angle to the headmasters.

"I can alter the effect of gravity on myself, changing its direction," Robin explained. His hair and clothing all hung towards the wall, with nothing to suggest that that wasn't the natural order of things.

Ozpin nodded. "A useful ability to be sure."

"Thank you," Robin replied politely. He hopped off the wall and pointed his feet at the floor before deactivating his Semblance. His body glowed red with his Aura, then he landed on the ground and returned to where the headmasters were standing.

"Now could you show us the new ability you've discovered?" Ironwood asked. He took out his scroll as he spoke. "I'm going to record this if you don't mind."

"Yes Sir," agreed Robin, though he was feeling a bit more nervous now. He shook his head to clear it and held out a hand.

Just as he'd done in the bathroom earlier, Robin focused on his hand and imagined what he wanted. Immediately, a small flame sprang to life, hovering an inch above his palm.

He smiled and turned to the two headmasters to find them both regarding him intently. General Ironwood had his scroll's camera trained on Robin, though it appeared to be focused on his face more so than the fire in his hand.

"You're not carrying any Dust?" asked Professor Ozpin.

"Um, just the battery of my scroll," answered Robin. "No Burn Dust."

Ozpin nodded. "Do you think that you could make the fire any bigger?"

Robin blinked in surprise. "Um, maybe?"

"Just try," asked Ozpin gently. "Don't worry about it too much, just make it as big as you can."

Robin nodded and looked back at the fire in his hand. He imagined it growing, then immediately flinched backwards as it doubled in size with a roar. He was now holding a fireball larger than his head, though he realized with some surprise that the heat coming off of it didn't feel at all uncomfortable. On some level he knew that the temperature should have been sweltering, but to him it just felt pleasantly warm.

"Did you see it?" asked General Ironwood softly.

"I saw it," confirmed Professor Ozpin.

Robin turned to face the headmasters, the flames in his hand going out as he did so. Both men were looking at Ironwood's scroll. "Saw what?"

General Ironwood held out the scroll. He had stopped recording and paused on a single image from the video. It showed Robin demonstrating his new Semblance. But the camera wasn't focused on the fire in his hand. It was focused on the crimson flames emanating from his eyes.

Robin raised a hand to his face, but if the fire was still there he couldn't feel it. He looked back at the two headmasters and found solemn expressions on their faces.

"What does it mean?" he asked.

"Let's go to my office to discuss this further," General Ironwood replied.

* * *

Robin sat in General Ironwood's office, the two headmasters seated in front of him, trying to absorb everything he'd just heard.

"And you think my new Semblance is…?" he asked, still staring at the floor.

"Actually the power of a Maiden," Ozpin confirmed. "Fire in your eyes the same color as your Aura is a sign."

"Additionally," began General Ironwood slowly. "We've learned that the Summer Maiden died the same day that your new abilities manifested."

"But how did I end up with the power?" asked Robin, looking up at his headmaster.

"Ordinarily, the power will pass on to the last person in the previous Maiden's thoughts," Ozpin answered. "However, if that person fails to meet the criteria of a Maiden, it will seek out a random host who does."

"What kind of criteria?" asked Robin.

"Age appears to be a factor," answered Ironwood. "Though we haven't been able to establish an exact cutoff. But also…" The general trailed off. Robin looked between the two headmasters.

"There's never been a male Maiden before," Ozpin finished after a few seconds.

Robin's body went rigid. "Oh," he managed to squeak out, his brain feeling like it wasn't working properly.

_There's no way…_

"As far as we knew, the Four Maidens were always women," explained Ironwood. "All of the history records, stories, everything always spoke of four young women wielding the power."

"To my knowledge, this is unprecedented," Ozpin agreed.

"Well," mumbled Robin. Both headmasters focused on him, and he flinched under their gaze.

_Why did you have to say something? Now they're going to want to hear it…_

"Go ahead," said Ozpin gently.

"Um, I was thinking…" Robin managed, feeling like there was a lump in his throat. "Maybe I am a woman?" The last word was barely a whisper.

General Ironwood raised his eyebrows in surprise, but Ozpin simply smiled.

"Are you saying that you're questioning your gender identity?" asked the Beacon headmaster.

"Well…"

Nervous didn't even begin to cover how Robin was feeling at that moment. But Ozpin's face was completely open, showing no sign of judgement. Even Ironwood had recovered from his surprise, and simply held a neutral expression.

_You just found out you're one of the Four Maidens. There literally could not be a better time._

"I'm not really questioning. I'm pretty positive that I'm a girl."

Ozpin smiled and nodded. "I'm not aware of there ever being a transgender Maiden before, but it would make sense."

Robin normally flinched at the word transgender, knowing that that's what he was but being afraid to admit it. But now, having finally admitted it out loud, to two of the most powerful men on Remnant no less, he didn't feel any fear.

"The powers bond to the person's Aura," Ironwood continued. "Biological sex wouldn't actually matter." He nodded slowly, looking pensive.

"So, you're saying I have a woman's Aura?" asked Robin. He couldn't stop himself from smiling.

"Yes, that appears to be the case," Ozpin replied. He turned to look at the general. "There is still a great deal to discuss regarding the responsibilities of a Maiden, but I believe we should table that for later. Robin has just come to a very significant revelation about himself." The professor turned back to the new Summer Maiden. "Apologies, I suppose I should say herself."

Robin flinched at that. "I-I don't know if…" he stammered.

Ozpin held up a hand. "That's all right. Beacon has had several students transition while enrolled. They each went at their own pace. You don't have to rush anything."

Robin nodded slowly and turned to General Ironwood. "What about Atlas?"

"Not in a few years," he answered. "But yes, we've had transgender students before. Whenever you feel that you'd like to begin presenting as a woman, that decision will be respected." He said the last part with the finality of an order.

Robin nodded slowly.

"Thank you both… I want to talk more about this Maiden stuff, but I really could use some time to myself right now."

"Understandable," said Ironwood. He rose from his chair and led Robin out the door of the office.

Robin's head was swimming as he walked back to his dorm room. He couldn't stop smiling.

_The Summer Maiden. I'm the Summer_  Maiden.

* * *

Two years later

Robin strode across the tundra of Solitas, her head held high in spite of the biting wind and falling snow. The temperature was frigid, and she wore only a light jacket, but it felt as warm to her as a summer afternoon. And indeed every snowflake that came within an inch of her quickly melted, leaving her long hair and brightly colored clothing pristine.

Robin crested a ridge and looked out to see a huge pack of Beowolves slowly advancing across the tundra. The cold was slowing their progress, but soon they would be getting dangerously close to Mantle.

Robin squinted and tried to guess the number of Grimm she was looking at, but the snow and the darkness from the cloud cover made it hard to see. She could tell the size of the group, but picking out individuals was more difficult.

_The snow will be annoying to fight in anyways._

Robin raised a hand over her head and placed her thumb and middle finger together. She took a deep breath, and her eyes began to glow with crimson fire. Then she snapped.

The wind howled for a moment as every snowflake in the air was blown away. Above Robin's head, the clouds parted, leaving an area a kilometer wide open to the sun. The horde of Grimm flinched at the sudden change in lighting, but quickly recovered and took notice of Robin. The pack immediately charged at the lone Huntress in training.

_Looks like a hundred of them. Not too bad._

A hundred Beowolves was more than the average Atlas senior could handle, but Robin was anything but average. General Ironwood had been confident that she could take this mission alone, and Robin was confident too.

As the first of the Grim closed the distance to her, Robin threw up a hand and a wall of fire erupted up from the ground in front of her, incinerating the nearest Beowolves. Several more were unable to stop themselves in time and ran right into the fire, burning to death in an instant.

Momentarily safe behind the barricade, Robin closed her eyes and focused. Flames roared to life on her back, and then resolved themselves into the shape of an enormous pair of wings. The fiery wings beat downwards and, despite their lack of mass, Robin shot into the air.

The Huntress in training soared above the tundra, smiling at the feeling of the wind in her hair and the way that the Grimm looked as small as ants. Of all the powers of the Summer Maiden, flight was her favorite. It made her Semblance almost completely redundant, but Robin wasn't complaining.

Robin raised a hand above her head, and a ball of fire ignited in her palm. It quickly grew until it was larger than her body, burning with the heat of a miniature sun. She lowered her hand to point at the Grimm, and the fireball burst into a dozen blazing comets that shot downwards into the horde. Each exploded as it struck the ground, sending Beowolves flying twenty feet into the hair. Those that weren't killed outright were scattered, breaking the pack apart.

Robin drew her weapon, a simple but elegant scimitar with a machine pistol built into the handle, from her belt and dove towards the remaining Grimm. She swooped low over the nearest Beowolf and hacked off its head as she passed. She then moved into a midair somersault and planted her feet in the face of another Grimm. She kicked off of it and sent herself into a spinning cut that beheaded another one of the monsters.

As Robin slowed, several Beowolves moved to surround her. She smiled and spun in a circle, her wings spreading out to light them all ablaze. The space around her clear, Robin gently landed on her feet, her wings going out as she did.

The remaining score of Grimm were all in front of her. They seemed a bit apprehensive after seeing all of their pack mates incinerated. But after a moment, one found the courage, or whatever passed for courage among the soulless monsters, to charge towards the Huntress in training, and the rest quickly followed.

Robin raised a foot and stomped downwards as hard as she could. The ground beneath her feet shattered, sending rocks the size of cars flying into the air over the charging Beowolves. Her eyes blazing, Robin focused on the flying stones and they glowed red hot before melting in an instant.

The lava splashed over the Grimm, killing them before they could even howl in pain. It didn't cover all of them, but even those a dozen feet away ignited from the sheer heat of the molten rock. By the time all of the lava had settled on the ground, the last of the Grimm was gone.

Robin sheathed her weapon and let the fire in her eyes die down. She panted with exhaustion at the intense use of her powers, but at the same time she felt incredible.

She lifted her face towards the sunlight that she'd uncovered from the clouds, smiling at how blue the sky looked. With the weather as it was, she was the only living thing for miles that could see it.

The power of the Summer Maiden was an enormous responsibility, but it was also the thing that had made Robin realize exactly who she was. And for that she would always love it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I felt a little bit awkward writing this, but I think I like how it turned out in the end. I'm not transgender, and I'm not especially close with anyone who is, but I did the best that I could. Please let me know if you feel there's anything that I've misrepresented.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	32. Yang-isms 2.3.46r3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's another Cunning Challenge prompt. This one was "Penny's new update comes with an O/S plugin: Yang-isms 2.3.46r3" submitted to me by shandromand.

Penny completed her booting sequence and opened her eyes. She was in the lab aboard one of the Atlesian ships stationed above Vale, just where she'd been when she powered down for updates.

Doctor Bargreen, the head of development in Vale and her father's most trusted assistant, was standing by her side with his scroll open to take notes. He smiled as he noticed her eyes open.

"How are you feeling, Penny?"

Penny ran a full system diagnostic before responding. "I am fully functional!"

Doctor Bargreen smiled and nodded, marking something on his scroll.

"Glad to hear it. The update was mostly bug fixes, but we did implement one major update and one new plugin. We'll have to go to the combat simulation lab to test the new predictive trajectory algorithms, but we can test the plugin right here. Run test suite for Yang-isms 2.3.46r3."

A long series of words and numbers flashed before Penny's eyes, stopping after a few seconds.

"Test suite for Yang-isms 2.3.46r3 has run two hundred eighty-four unit tests. All tests passed with twenty-three warnings and zero errors."

"Alright, sounds good," replied Doctor Bargreen. "I'll download the test results to my scroll and have the team take a look at those warnings." Penny felt the slight drain that came whenever data was downloaded from her mind. It was a bit unpleasant, but she'd become used to it by now.

"Now we can move on to field testing," continued the doctor. "Yang-isms is a social interaction program that includes several useful features. And before you ask, I don't know where the name comes from." Penny's head drooped a bit. For a moment she had thought that the program might be named after Ruby's sister.

Doctor Bardeen held out his scroll. On it was a picture of a man with a big smile on his face.

"I'm going to show you a series of pictures," he explained. "I want you to tell me how the people in these pictures are feeling."

Penny examined the photo of the man and immediately realized that her normal emotional recognition functions had been disabled. Instead, the Yang-isms plugin was processing the image. In just a few milliseconds, it gave her a response.

"This man is feeling depressed, but he is attempting to appear happy."

"Very good," replied Doctor Bargreen. He showed Penny several more photos, and she correctly identified the emotions of the people in them. Her new plugin was able to give her far more detail than her old algorithms could. Moreover, it was able to see through people who were attempting to mask their real feelings.

Once they were done with the photos, the doctor took his scroll back and marked that Penny had identified all of the emotions correctly.

"One last thing before we move on," he said, making eye contact. "Penny, tell me a joke."

For a moment, Penny had no idea what to do. Then she looked down at herself, and her mind abruptly made a connection that she never would have made before.

"Doctor," she began. "If I lost my left arm and my left leg, would I be all right?"

Doctor Bardeen chuckled and made a note on his scroll. Penny's new plugin told her that he had genuinely found the joke to be fairly humorous.

Penny decided that she liked Yang-isms.

* * *

Penny sent her blades flying forward, but her armored opponent leapt behind a boulder. The blades embedded themselves into the rock, and Penny's wires pulled taut.

Penny glanced at Ciel for approval, but the other girl merely tapped at her watch. Yang-isms reported that she was feeling serious and impatient, which was about all it ever had to say about Ciel.

Penny drew back her arms and directed her blades upwards. They lifted the boulders that her two opponents were hiding behind into the air. The two boys were left clinging on for dear life, until Penny hurled them into the ground, shattering the boulders. The buzzer signaled that their Auras had fallen into the red.

"And victory goes to Penny and Ciel of Atlas!" announced Doctor Oobleck as Penny bowed respectfully to her opponents.

"Thank you for a wonderful time," said Penny in her typical upbeat tone. Then her new plugin made another connection. "I hope that we can be friends after this, despite the rocky start to our relationship."

Sky and Russel groaned, but Penny could hear laughter from the audience, so she continued.

"You shouldn't feel bad. Many wouldn't have had the stones to face us at all!"

The audience continued laughing as Penny and Ciel exited the arena. As they were walking through one of the vestibules, she heard a voice call out her name.

"RUBY!" her voice recognition software practically screamed at her. Immediately her entire system was on high alert. Penny whirled around and quickly located the diminutive girl, then devoted all available CPU to glomp subroutines.

Once the two girls had picked themselves up off the floor, Penny gestured to the other girl with her.

"Ruby, this is my teammate."

"Ciel Soleil," said the girl in introduction.

"Hi, I'm Ru-" began Penny's friend before being cut off.

"Ruby Rose," Ciel interrupted. "Fifteen, hails from Patch, leader of team RWBY. Status: questionable."

Ruby stared at the other girl for a moment, her face reading slight irritation.

"Soooo, Penny!" Ruby said, going from annoyed to excited as soon as she returned her gaze to her friend. "You two were incredible out there! How do you keep control of all those swords? It's so cool!"

"Penny," said Ciel before Penny could answer. "I believe it is best if we move on to our next location."

Penny glanced at her friend before speaking.

"Could we have just a minute to talk?"

Ciel glanced at her watch before taking a step back. Ruby and Penny turned away from the other girl before speaking.

"So," began Ruby. "Is she your friend or…"

"Well, in a way," replied Penny. "She's like Blake, but if Blake was ordered to spend time with you."

"Oh, so Weiss," answered Ruby. Penny chuckled at the joke.

"Precisely."

"Does she know about, you know, beep-boop-bop, does not compute?" asked Ruby, gesturing mechanically with her arms as she did so. Again, Penny giggled, but she answered seriously.

"Oh no, General Ironwood doesn't really want anyone to know. There was an incident with a magnet, but I was able to play it off. I suggested that it was merely attracted to my magnetic personality."

The two friends shared a laugh.

"I was surprised to hear you telling jokes during the match," commented Ruby. "You sounded like my sister."

"Yes, it's a skill I recently learned," replied Penny. Then she leaned a bit closer to her friend. "Ruby, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about." She glanced at Ciel and then whispered. "I want to stay at Beacon."

"Penny, they'll never let you do that," replied Ruby sadly. Penny read her face, and the concern she found their made her feel something she didn't fully understand.

"I know," she admitted. "But I have a plan."

The plan was simple, yet Penny knew that there were many ways it could fail. She intended to accept the Fall Maiden's powers, and hopefully her performance in the tournament would convince Professor Ozpin that she was worthy of them. Then she would pretend that the soul she had received was too attached to Vale to bear leaving. The general would never allow Penny to stay, but it would be harder for him to argue with Amber.

The problem, beyond merely acquiring the Fall Maiden's powers, was that Penny had no idea if Amber's soul really would affect her in some way. Maybe the comatose girl would hate to stay in the place where she'd been kept unconscious for so long, and her trauma might carry over through the Aura transfer. Worse, Penny knew that there were some people who, as crazy as it sounded, didn't like Ruby. What if Amber were such a person?

In the milliseconds it took Penny to ponder all of this, Ciel approached and spoke up.

"It's been precisely one minute, ma'am." Penny registered seriousness and impatience.

"I'll talk to you more soon, Ruby!" Penny said energetically. She turned to depart along with her teammate, taking one last chance to look back at Ruby and wave.

* * *

Penny stepped into the arena once more, this time opposite the Invincible Girl, Pyrrha Nikos.

She knew a fair bit about this opponent. Between the girl's Semblance and her wealth of tournament experience, this was likely to be one of the most difficult fights she'd ever been in.

Pyrrha was also one of the other main candidates to receive the Fall Maiden's power from Amber. Defeating her in the tournament might help prove that Penny was the one who should be given the honor instead.

Then Penny examined her opponent's face, and Yang-isms gave her a surprising report. Pyrrha was distracted, and extremely stressed. Something outside the context of the tournament was scaring her to the point that she could hardly focus on anything else. She was probably only half perceiving everything around her. And it would have to be something truly serious to affect such an experienced fighter like this.

Penny knew that she could take advantage of her opponent's state. It would be far easier to win the fight with Pyrrha so out of sorts. But something inside of Penny couldn't stand to see this girl so obviously hurting. Penny didn't know if this empathy she was feeling was a new feature, or if she'd had it all along, or even if it was part of her programming at all, but she was certain that she had to help Pyrrha feel better.

"Salutations, Pyrrha Nikos!" called Penny with a wave. "It's an honor to finally meet you." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I'm so proud to call you my peer-a."

The Mistralian girl blinked in surprise and looked up at Penny. "Was that a pun on my name?"

Penny nodded in confirmation. For a moment Pyrrha stared at her in shock, and Penny was concerned that she'd offended the other girl.

Then Pyrrha burst into laughter. She covered her mouth with the back of her hand as she giggled, the stress on her face melting away.

"Well a-Pyrrha-ntly you liked that one!" Penny commented cheerfully. Pyrrha's laughter redoubled, and all signs of distraction from earlier seemed to disappear. When the champion fighter finally had control of herself again, her face read extreme gratitude.

"You're friends with Ruby, aren't you?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yes, I am!" Penny replied joyfully.

Pyrrha nodded. "Well any friend of Ruby's is a friend of mine. Let's have a great match."

Penny nearly vibrated with excitement. "This is going to be so much fun."

The commentators and audience took a moment to applaud the display of amity between the two girls, and then the match began.

Penny and Pyrrha immediately closed the distance between each other, and their weapons came together. Blades clashed with incredible speed and precision, every blow a master stroke. Penny had more weapons and greater range of motion with them, but Pyrrha was able to cope, her Semblance protecting her when normal parries couldn't.

Then Pyrrha abruptly glanced down at her own weapons, surprise written on her face. Penny didn't know what she was looking at, nothing appeared to be wrong. But regardless of what she had seen, Pyrrha had picked the wrong moment to look away. Penny's next attack knocked her shield from her hand and sent it spinning across the arena.

Pyrrha reached out for the shield, and it became surrounded in a hazy black aura. For a moment, Penny considered allowing her opponent to retrieve her shield, but decided against it.

_I can only be so nice if I want to win this fight. If Pyrrha is still distracted, I can't help her._

Penny sent one of her blades out and used it to knock Pyrrha's shield out of bounds. Then she stepped back and recalled her swords, readying them for one final attack.

Pyrrha stared at her opponent in horror that Penny didn't fully understand. She seemed far more afraid of the eight blades than she should have been. Was she so scared of losing? Penny carefully calculated the amount of force it would take to bring Pyrrha's Aura into the red without hurting her, and launched her weapons forward.

Pyrrha cried out as she unleashed a huge wave of magnetism to counter the attack. Immediately, Penny realized that her opponent had used more force than necessary, dangerously so in fact.

Pyrrha seemed to recognize her mistake at the exact same time. She stretched out a hand and tried to nullify the force she had unleashed. Half of the swords stopped in midair, and the remaining ones slowed in their flight towards Penny.

That was when Penny's predictive trajectory algorithm gave her its results. She saw the path that each blade would take highlighted in the air before her. Two were going to miss completely, one was going to wrap its wire around her right arm, and one was going to snag her in the waist. However, Penny calculated that if she could avoid one wire, her Aura would be able to withstand the other.

Upon realizing this, Penny activated another feature of Yang-isms. No one had been able to explain to her why this was included in a social interactions plugin, but it looked like it was about to save her life.

Penny's right arm separated from her body just above the elbow, the wire that was going to rip it off passing through the gap without damaging her Aura. The remaining wire wrapped around her waist, hurting her immensely but failing to bring her Aura to zero.

As Penny's swords fell to the ground, the audience let out a collective gasp, both at the sight of the losing an arm and the total lack of blood. Penny saw a look of abject horror on Pyrrha's face. Even Penny's old emotion recognition software could have told her that girl was stunned by the damage that she had caused.

Outside of the colosseum, Cinder grimaced. The artificial girl was supposed to be dead, but dismemberment would have to do. Her robotic nature had been revealed to the crowd, so at least Cinder could work off of that. She was about to hijack the broadcast when Penny spoke up.

"Well that was inefficient." The whole arena went quiet at the strangeness of her comment. Penny smiled brightly before continuing. "I gave up a quarter to save Penny!"

Silence fell over the colosseum. The fans in the back row could have heard a pin drop.

Then the whole audience burst out laughing. The tension that had filled the air a moment ago was gone. Everyone from the fans to the commentators was hysterical at how absurd it all was. Pyrrha covered her mouth but failed to suppress a giggle. Even Ruby, who a moment ago was nearly in tears over her friend's injury, was now laughing with relief.

Cinder watched it all through her scroll in disbelief. Her whole plan had been foiled by a bad pun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love puns. I also love giving Penny a program named after Yang that allows her to detach her right arm. Because that's the kind of person I am.


	33. Summer Lives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one was from a while ago, but I forgot to upload it here until now. The prompt was "Summer survives and Tai dies and changes the events throughout the show."

Ruby lay on the coach in her living room. An article on cutting-edge Dust ammunition was open on her scroll, but she wasn't reading it. She found it hard to focus considering what her plans for the rest of the day were.

She'd been trying to read for half an hour when she heard the front door open.

"I'm home!" Yang called as she came in. Ruby immediately launched herself up from the coach to greet her sister.

She found Yang in the entryway, wiping the snow off her boots. Once they were mostly clean she took off her backpack and began brushing off the long brown jacket that she always wore. Ruby knew that her sister could have walked around in her underwear and scarcely felt the cold, but Yang was too shy to wear anything at all revealing. Her hair was the only aspect of her appearance that she took any pride in or made any effort to show off.

"Hey, sis," greeted Ruby. She waited until her sister was snow free before giving her a quick hug.

"Hi, Ruby," Yang replied. "Give me a just a minute to get ready, then we'll go." Ruby nodded in agreement.

"Hey there," called their mom as she came down the stairs to greet them. "Did you have a good time with Saphira?"

"Yeah, we had fun," replied Yang. "She mentioned that you've been giving her a hard time in class."

"Well if I don't give her a hard time, her footwork won't get any better," answered Summer in her Mom Voice.

Saphira was Yang's best friend, her only close friend besides Ruby. She was a year behind Yang at Signal, but they'd been close ever since they were little. The two had been spending a lot of time together lately since Yang was going to be leaving for Beacon in a couple of months. She'd just come back from a sleepover at Saphira's house.

After hugging her mom briefly, Yang ran upstairs to put her backpack away. She came down a minute later wearing her gauntlets.

"I'm ready to go."

"OK," said Ruby, picking up Crescent Rose from where she'd left it on the living room table. She hung the weapon from her back and walked to the front door.

"Be safe you two," Summer instructed.

"We will," the sisters agreed in unison before heading out the door.

Ruby and Yang trudged through the snowy forest of Patch together. They talked some about school, weapons, and news about big-name Huntsmen, but for the most part they walked in silence. After almost twenty minutes, they reached their destination.

Their father's gravestone sat on a cliff overlooking more of the snowy woods. The stone bore his emblem, a fiery heart, along with five words.

_Taiyang Xiao Long_   
_Burning Bright_

The two girls stopped in front of the grave marker. Ruby knew that Yang needed a minute to collect her thoughts, so she went first.

"Hi Dad," she said softly. "Sorry we haven't visited in a while. School's been busy, what with exams and everything. Oh, Uncle Qrow's back in town! He said he might be able to stay for a while this time. I showed him the upgrades I made to Crescent Rose, and he was really impressed."

Ruby continued talking about whatever came to mind, waiting until her sister was ready. She missed her father, but she knew that Yang had taken his death the hardest. Ruby had only been four when it happened, but she remembered how the color had seemed to drain from her sister and never entirely return. Ever since, Ruby had been supporting Yang in any way she could, trying to be a spot of light in her life now that she didn't have either of her biological parents.

Finally, Ruby sensed that her sister was ready. She finished paying her respects and stepped back.

"Hi Dad," Yang began with a small smile. "I got into Beacon. I mean, I knew I would, but it's nice to have it in print. I'll be leaving in a couple of months. I'm excited, but I'm nervous too. There's going to be a lot more strong people at Beacon, so I'll have to work even harder to compete.

"I wish that I had had you to teach me how to fight. Everyone says that you're better at hand to hand than any of the teachers at Signal. I could have really used your help." Yang's voice was starting to crack a bit.

"I convinced Mom and Qrow to tell me more about Raven, and… I just don't get it. I don't feel like I understand her at all. They said that you brought out the best in her and that you saw more in her than anybody else did. I wish you were here to tell me about her. I miss you, Dad…"

Ruby put an arm around her sister as Yang began to sob softly. They stayed that way until Yang's tears stopped, and then they turned back towards home.

The two girls had only been walking for a few minutes when they came into a large clearing and found it full of Beowolves. The lupine Grimm stood in a loose pack, facing the sisters and snarling.

Ruby stepped forwards and drew out Crescent Rose, unfolding it into its scythe form. Behind her, Yang's gauntlets extended to cover her fists.

Seeing this display of aggression, the Beowolves charged forward. Ruby raised her weapon and fired the built-in sniper, blowing the head off one of the creatures. Behind her, Yang raised her gauntlets and began spraying submachinegun fire into the pack, taking the steam out of their charge.

As the creatures neared the girls, Ruby ran forward to meet them. The Beowolf in the lead raised a claw to swat her away, but before it could Ruby suddenly accelerated and chopped its head off with her scythe. She continued forwards, hacking limbs off of the Grimm as she ran through their ranks.

Ruby knew that she should try to let as few Grimm as possible get past her. Yang could certainly handle a few Beowolves up close, but she was better off fighting from a distance with her SMG gauntlets. Ruby's fight was made a lot easier with Yang's supporting fire crippling or picking off any Grimm that tried to flank her.

Then she heard Yang cry out.

"Oh crap!"

Ruby spun around to see another pack of Beowolves emerging from the trees behind them to charge Yang. This pack was smaller than the first, but it had caught them off guard and had nearly closed the distance to Yang.

Before Ruby could react, she was reminded of the presence of the first group of Grimm by the slash of claws across her back. Her Aura protected her from being torn to shreds, but the force of the blow knocked her off her feet.

It also activated her Semblance. Using the energy from the attack to enhance her speed, Ruby exploded into a red tornado, cutting the Beowolf that had attacked her to ribbons. She continued forwards, tearing apart more Grimm with each second until she burned off the power she had gained.

Once she had cleared some space for herself, Ruby cast another glance back at her sister. Yang was surrounded by Beowolves, but she was managing, using the creatures' own strength to toss them around. Even so, she was killing them far too slowly to hold out for long. Yang could punch the head right off a Grimm, but against so many at once she was forced to spend most of her energy defending.

Ruby ran towards her sister, cutting down any Grimm that got in her way, but the creatures were surrounding her as well, slowing her progression to a crawl.

Ruby wondered if she would have to use her eyes. With her mother's training, she had learned to activate them on command, but she'd never managed to do so without fainting afterwards, and she wasn't sure that she'd be able to take out every single Grimm.

Just as Ruby was weighing that choice, Yang threw one Beowolf into two of its pack mates, clearing some space for herself. She raised one fist and yelled to her sister.

"Watch out!"

Ruby raised her arms in front of her and focused her Aura as Yang punched the ground and activated her Semblance.

A wave of fire emanated from her, searing the Grimm around her and knocking them away. Several of the Beowolves were hurled a dozen feet into the air, while others were simply knocked off their feet. None of the creatures were left standing within twenty yards of Yang.

Standing thirty yards away with her Aura ready, Ruby was completely protected from the shockwave. It did, however, hit her just hard enough to charge her Semblance again. The cloaked girl ran like the wind, her scythe hacking Beowolves to pieces.

At the same time, Yang raised her gauntlets and began firing into the off-balance Grimm, cutting them down. Within a minute, the entire field was clear of the monsters.

The two sisters laughed as they collected themselves after the battle. Yang had the huge smile on her face that she always wore after a victory. As they turned towards home, Ruby felt confident that her sister would do fine at Beacon.


	34. How He's Remembered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt this week was "RWY/JNR and co. eavesdrop on Oscar's and Ozpin's conversation. They can't decide whether only hearing half of it makes it better or worse." I think I did something more serious than the person who suggested the prompt had in mind...

Ruby rushed downstairs at full speed, drawn by the smell of bacon and eggs wafting through the house in Mistral. It had been a day and a half since the battle of Haven, but everyone was still exhausted and Ruby was looking forward to a big breakfast. She turned the corner into the kitchen…

And found Jaune and Ren weren't done with the food yet. This may have been due to Nora's constant pestering for pancakes, but Ruby was still inclined to blame the boys. Grimacing, she plopped down into one of the chairs in the living room and groaned loudly.

"We're working on it, OK?" Jaune moaned.

"Well work faster!" Ruby shot back. "The leader of Team RNJR says so!"

"Excuse me?" Weiss scoffed as she came down the stairs, joining Ruby in the living room. "Did you abandon us for another team while we were away?"

"Of course not!" Ruby cried immediately. "I'll always be Team RWBY all the way!"

"That's not what you said when we were travelling," countered Jaune with a sly smile on his face. "You said RNJR was the best team you'd ever been on."

Weiss turned to Ruby with feigned hurt on her face.

"Yeah," continued Nora, picking up on the joke. "You said that you liked us a million times better than your old team."

At that moment Yang walked in, her mouth wide open in shock even while her eyes were laughing. She turned to her sister to demand an explanation.

"Lies!" protested Ruby. "Lies and slander!"

"I can't believe it," Yang said, managing to make her voice sound like she was about to break down into tears. "Betrayed by my own sister."

"It's not true!" insisted Ruby. "Ren, you'll tell them I never said that, right?"

"I'm staying out of this," Ren said, focusing on the pan of sizzling bacon in front of him.

"Ren knows the truth," trilled Nora. "You love us more."

"Guuuuys!" Ruby groaned loudly, but even she was starting to enjoy the joke. It would have been a lot less funny a week ago, but now Team RWBY was back together, even if Blake was with her parents at the moment.

"Hey," called Qrow as he stumbled down the stairs from his bedroom. "It's too early for you kids to be making so much noise."

"Well, it looks like most of us are here," Jaune pointed out. "And these eggs are almost done. Somebody wake up Oscar and then breakfast is served."

"Weiss, can you do it?" Ruby asked, too comfy to move from the chair she was in.

"I'm sorry, but the leader of Team RNJR can't order me to do a thing," Weiss replied smoothly.

Ruby gave her partner a hurt expression, but Weiss was ignored her. Yang and Qrow were similarly unfazed by her pleading look. Finally she groaned and dragged herself back upstairs to get Oscar.

She walked to the boy's room and found the door ajar. Through the crack she could see Oscar lying face-up in bed with his eyes still closed. She was about to knock when he spoke.

"Ozpin," he said softly. "What was that dream?"

Ruby paused. She wasn't sure if she should interrupt or let Oscar continue speaking with the professor. Either way she knew she shouldn't eavesdrop, but she felt rooted to the spot.

"It was horrible," Oscar whispered after a moment of silence. "Did Salem do that?"

Ruby winced sympathetically. Ozpin had been fighting Salem longer than she could imagine. He must have seen a lot of terrible things, and now Oscar was experiencing those memories.

Then the boy sat bolt upright in bed, a stunned look on his face.

"What?" he hissed. "You…"

Ruby's eyes widened. Ozpin had done whatever horrible thing Oscar dreamed about?

It was strange hearing half of a conversation like this. Even listening to someone talk on a scroll she could at least hear bits of what the other person said. But here it seemed like Oscar was just talking to himself.

"Why?" asked Oscar timidly. Ruby leaned closer to the door as if this would somehow let her hear the professor's answer. He perked up his head after a moment. "OK, and… they didn't believe you, did they?" His expression became somber again.

_Didn't believe him about what? The Relics? Salem?_

"A mistake?" cried Oscar. "Yeah, I guess that's one word for trying to take over the world!"

Ruby's eyes widened.

_What?_

"How did you even…?" Oscar began before pausing to listen. Then he sighed and lowered his head. "Great, you just went full on evil wizard."

Ruby wasn't sure whether or not she wanted to know what had prompted that remark. It was probably awesome… and also horrifying.

"So what finally ended your reign of terror?" muttered Oscar. After a moment he let out a humorless laugh. " _Three?_ What was the fourth Maiden doing?" Then his face fell. "Of course you killed her. Why did I even bother asking?"

Oscar squeezed his eyes shut as he spoke again. He was nearly shaking.

"Yeah, I saw. You destroyed the entire city. Gods, there'd be five kingdoms right now if it weren't for you."

Ruby's breath caught in her throat. She thought that what she'd been imagining was bad, but that was on a whole other level.

Oscar frowned as he continued listening to Ozpin.

"Wait, this is starting to sound familiar…" he mumbled.

Ruby watched as realization slowly dawned on Oscar's face. He covered his mouth as his eyes became as wide as saucers. His voice was shaking as he managed to choke out one word.

"Ozymandias."

Ozymandias. The villain of a book so old that no one knew how much of it was supposed to be true. The story had been retold at least a hundred times since then, painting Ozymandias as everything from a deranged psychopath to a brooding anti-hero. But no matter the telling, his body count was always too high to guess.

And he had been Ruby's headmaster. She'd watched movies ranging from amazing to so bad they were good featuring him as the villain. He'd killed her favorite character in Ancient Evil 2. She'd killed him in video games. She'd given Jaune pointers on how to kill him in video games. That was the man leading them in the fight against Salem.

_What kind of person does the world remember like_  that?

"Hey Ruby!" Yang suddenly called from downstairs. "You got him?"

Ruby jumped at the sudden interruption. Her hand hit the door and knocked it open.

Ruby and Oscar stared at each other for a second, neither one speaking. Finally Ruby managed to find her voice.

"Breakfast is ready,"

"How much of that did you hear?" Oscar asked softly.

"A lot," whispered Ruby in reply. She looked at her feet for a second, then back to the farm boy with the ancient wizard in his head. There were tears in his eyes.

"You're you… you know?" Ruby stated uncertainly. "Whoever he is, you're you."

Oscar continued to stare at her for a few seconds. Then he nodded.

"Come down when you're ready," Ruby said, turning towards the stairs. "I'll save you some food."

"Thanks," whispered Oscar as he watched her go.


	35. H. P. Lovecraft's RWBY

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Free-For-All is here again! I had a lot going on this week and was unfortunately late in starting, but I finally got one finished. This prompt was "Write a Lovecraftian cosmic horror story."

I have always rejected the idea that ignorance is bliss. Though some truths may be unpleasant or distressing, it is still better to know them than to remain unaware. Certainly the discovery when I was ten that my father never loved my mother saddened me a great deal, but I think losing my youthful naiveté benefitted me in the long term.

But as I sit here now, having been unable to sleep for days, writing these words more in the hope of calming my fear than out of desire that any should read them, I must doubt my earlier conviction. I am certain that no good could come from the glimpse that I received of the true terror of the world.

The journey to Mountain Glen that my team undertook was completely unexpected. It was my teammate Blake who discovered that old ruined city to be our target through her investigation of the criminal Roman Torchwick. In the seedier parts of Vale, she utilized her Faunus nature to infiltrate a meeting between his criminal enterprise and the White Fang. There she overheard discussion of a base of operations in ruins to the east of Vale.

Torchwick's stake in the White Fang was unclear to us at the time, for though it is natural for criminals to work together, it seems unlike a gangster to sink to the depravity of a cult like the White Fang. The heinous acts of degenerate Faunus could not be used to gain the money or influence that Torckwick craves, and yet the two factions had made some sort of alliance.

As such, we made plans to investigate Mountain Glen and determine the threat that existed there. This journey would have been far more difficult had we not secured the approval of Professor Ozpin of Beacon Academy. He even asked his colleague, Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck to lead the expedition.

My teammates and I were already familiar with Doctor Oobleck, but it was during this journey that we truly got to know him. He is an excitable and energetic man who often speaks too quickly to be understood. Nevertheless, his wealth of experience would prove invaluable in exploring the ruins of Mountain Glen.

The five of us, along with my partner Ruby's dog Zwei, arrived in the city by airship early in the day. Mountain Glen was a sorry sight, the buildings and streets being in varying states of disrepair. We immediately set about searching the desolate area in spite of the significant presence of Grimm. Doctor Oobleck asked that my teammates and I protect our group from the unnatural creatures while he focused on studying the ruins. I suspect that this was meant as a test for us, one which we proved entirely capable of passing.

Finding no evidence of human or Faunus activity that first day, we made camp in one of the dilapidated structures with Ruby agreeing to take the first watch.

But no sooner had I settled into sleep than I was awoken by Zwei's barking. Immediately realizing that Ruby was missing, we followed the dog to a fissure that had opened in the ground, beside which lay Ruby's weapon. Doctor Oobleck posited that when Mountain Glen had first been overrun by the creatures of Grimm, the inhabitants dug themselves a new city beneath the earth in which they unsuccessfully attempted to hide.

Carefully descending into the fissure in search of my partner, we indeed discovered the structures in which the citizens of Mountain Glen had likely concealed themselves. However, this city was far different from the one above that looked like it could have been a twin to Vale.

The subterranean necropolis was built of stone cut into the most unnatural of shapes. The oversized bricks fit together at odd angles without any use of mortar. Indeed all the angles that made up the city appeared off in some way or another, as if the very geometry of the place were devised by a madman. There were structures whose construction appeared to utilize dimensions apart from our own. At every turn we were greeted by circles that possessed corners and lines that were parallel and yet somehow intersected.

Every surface of the city was covered in nauseating hieroglyphs depicting barbaric scenes of slaughter, both of Grimm against man and of one man against another. Many of the people in these carvings had strange deformities far exceeding those of an ordinary Faunus. The bodies of some were covered in misshapen horns while others possessed extra limbs which writhed like the tentacles of a squid. Dimly lit as the place was, there were many carvings which we could not make out, and for that I am deeply grateful.

Yang and I were sickened by these aberrant carvings, and even Doctor Oobleck's excitement at this discovery was tempered by revulsion. Blake's reaction, however, we purely one of fascination, her stomach apparently made of sterner stuff.

After moving through the city for what must have been an hour, we came upon a plaza of a scale vaster than any I thought should exist underground. It was here that we caught our first glimpse of our targets.

A dozen of the Faunus, dressed in the robes of their cult, stood in a wide circle around a huge stone slab covered in the same strange carvings as the rest of the city. Before the slab, Ruby lay prone, trembling with fear. Torchwick leered over her; occasionally striking her with his cane as he loudly addressed the assembled members of the White Fang.

A part of me wanted to know what he was saying, but Yang reacted immediately to the sight of her sister's distress, loudly announcing our presence. As we advanced upon the cultists, readying our weapons even as they drew theirs, Yang took aim and shot Torchwick in the shoulder, causing him to fall back against the stone slab.

The battle was joined against the White Fang, and we quickly had them on the defensive in spite of their superior numbers. Doctor Oobleck's flame weapon sent our enemies diving for cover amongst the buildings while I advanced with my sword.

One of the White Fang members, perhaps braver than his companions, rushed forward to meet me carrying a crude machete. We crossed blades, but his form was mediocre, and it was clear he had no chance of defeating me. But as we fought a thrust from my blade relieved the Faunus of his mask, and the sight beneath gave me pause.

The man's face was of an unnatural shape, resembling nothing so much as a frog. His eyes bulged from their sockets, and his mouth split his face nearly from ear to ear. A multitude of writing tendrils, each several inches long, grew from his bulbous chin, seeming to grasp for me. It was clear this man was no ordinary Faunus, but one of the deformed people from the carvings.

Panicking at the sight of him, I thrust forward with my blade and stabbed him through his swollen throat. As I withdrew my blade, his lifeblood splattered onto the ground in front of the stone tablet. It was only then that I realized that Ruby had a cut on her stomach which was leaking onto the floor.

No sooner had the bloods mixed than a tremendous shaking ran through the cavern, dislodging dust from the ceiling and making it difficult to maintain my balance. A great sucking sound could be heard throughout the plaza, as if a giant were drawing breath.

As the quake continued, Torchwick pushed himself off of the stone slab to stand upright. He tore his damaged and bloodstained sleeve from his shirt revealing his arm to be covered in short bony protrusions in place of hair. The sight was so aberrant that even now I find it difficult to look at my own arms without imagining with disgust such bones growing from them.

"Great Ixugthol stirs!" screamed Torchwick in an unnatural frenzy.

"Ixugthol stirs!" chanted the remaining cultists from their hiding places. "Ixugthol stirs!"

I must confess I do not know if I am spelling the name that they chanted correctly. The guttural sound grated on my ears even as it was half masked by the rumbling of the city. It may be that it has no proper spelling, for it is not a part of any proper language.

Fearing that the whole place might collapse, I ran to Ruby's side. Torchwick advanced on me and raised his cane, but a gunshot from Yang forced him back. I tried to help my partner to her feet, but she was unresponsive, simply muttering of teeth and blood red wings. I dragged her to her feet and half carried her away the gangster and his cultists.

Only as I turned away the stone tablet did my eyes settle on it long enough to truly see what it depicted, and the sight was so shocking that for a moment I stopped, my mouth hanging open. The lower half was covered in carvings of the same twisted humanoids whose likeness filled the rest of the city. But here they stood side by side with the creatures of Grimm, together slaughtering a number of cowering humans.

And above them all was an image of such terror as to take my breath away. The thing depicted there had the form of an unnaturally twisted serpent with spines covering its back and ribs poking through its chest. The monster's too-wide mouth was filled with more teeth than any creature should possess. Multiple sets of eyes stared out from above them. Wings which must have been wide enough to block out the sun sprouted from its back, looking like those of some terrible bat creature. Ichor fell from the thing's body, and as it descended down the carving it transformed into more of the creatures of Grimm, which moved to join in the slaughter below.

Another tremor went through the cavern. Ruby shuddered beside me, and under her breath she murmured "Ixugthol."

"Weiss, we need to move!" Yang cried out to me, finally waking me from the stupor that the carving had left me in. I gathered up Ruby as best I could and followed my teammates away. Doctor Oobleck unleashed one last blast of fire at the White Fang members before following us in retreat.

We escaped the caverns just as a portion of the ceiling collapsed behind us. The tremors stopped immediately after. With Ruby injured and shell-shocked, we evacuated Mountain Glen as quickly as we could. We reported what we had found to Professor Ozpin in the hopes that a larger force could be sent in later to ensure that the White Fang presence there had been destroyed.

Ruby has remained disconsolate since then. I have remained by her side as much as possible and have heard many whisperings of a hideous nature. I fear that she may have been forced to see the true form of Ixugthol and been driven to this state by its horror.

Yang and Blake dismissed my concerns, insisting that the carving was nothing more than a fantasy and that Ruby will recover soon. But after questioning them, I realized that neither saw the deformities of Torchwick or the White Fang cultists, nor did they pay any attention to the carvings on the stone slab. I suspect that they would not be so optimistic if they had.

Since then I have been unable to sleep for fear of the terror beneath Mountain Glen, and the disaster that nearly occurred there. It is clear that the White Fang sought human sacrifices, and had we all been isolated as Ruby was, we might have become those sacrifices. Who knows what horrors might have been unleashed had Torchwick been successful?

Those musings force me to remember who it was that sent us there in the first place. Only one member of our team actually heard Torchwick say anything about his activity in Mountain Glen, and she was alone at the time. I have no wish to suspect one of my teammates, but in the past days I have felt amber eyes on me everywhere I go. I can only pray that I am wrong, and that no other should be forced to confront the horror that is Ixugthol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another entry in my Biannual Fancy Writing (TM) finished! Writing like Lovecraft is definitely an experience. If anybody hasn't read Call of Cthulhu, it's definitely worth it to at least do that.
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	36. A Much Needed Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt this week was "In a moment of quiet no one thought would happen, Adam and Blake have a frank, honest discussion about their past, relationships, and Faunus Rights."

The Seer Grimm carried Blake down the dark, musty hall of the castle closely following Tyrian. The tendrils wrapped around her limbs were unyielding despite their delicate appearance. She had struggled against them for a while, but she gave up when she realized she was just wasting her strength.

Finally Tyrian stopped in front of one of the cells of Salem's dungeon and unlocked the door. He grinned wickedly at Blake before moving aside to allow the Seer into the cell. The dungeon was barely lit by the tiny and infrequent windows, but it was enough for Blake's Faunus eyes to make out her cellmate.

"I'm going to kill you when I get out of here!" snarled Adam as he struggled against the chains holding his wrists above him. "Both of you!"

"Oh, I'm just shaking in my boots!" replied Tyrian with a grin. He moved to chain Blake up on the opposite side of the room from Adam, the Seer Grimm holding her in place as he did so.

Blake knew that imprisoning her in the same cell as Adam was some kind of sick joke, but she wasn't sure if the joke was on her or Adam.

Adam continued to shout at Tyrian until he finished chaining up Blake. Then the scorpion Faunus kicked Adam in the stomach before leaving the two prisoners alone in the darkness.

After that Adam turned his verbal abuse towards Blake. He screamed at her, threatened her, and demanded that she answer him. She remained silent through it all, not even looking at him for the half hour it took him to wear himself out.

Neither Faunus said anything for a long time after that. Until Blake finally thought of something she wanted to say.

"Did I ever tell you why I'm scared of dogs?"

Adam's mask had been taken from him, and even in the dark Blake could see the full surprise on his face. It took him a few seconds to respond.

"Yeah, the police dog that attacked you at that rally. What were you, seven?"

"Yeah, that's right," Blake answered, a little surprised that he remembered. "A while ago I was thinking about it, and me being scared of dogs because of that, it's kind of like how the humans are with us, isn't it?"

Adam glared at her.

"Are you serious?" he demanded. "Are you actually serious right now? Humans hate us just because of who we are."

"Maybe some of them do," Blake agreed before he could continue. "But I think some of them feel like they have a good reason to be afraid of Faunus. And thanks to you a lot more of them feel that way."

"I'm only giving them what they deserve!" Adam shouted.

"Really?" demanded Blake. "You're telling me everyone at Beacon was just getting what they deserve? You're telling me Yang deserved to lose her arm?"

"Your partner?" sneered Adam. "I'm sure she was just an angel. After all, she had Faunus friends."

Blake groaned with exasperation and shook her head, wondering why she'd expected anything else from Adam. But the former White Fang leader wasn't done.

"If Beacon was so great, why did you hide your ears while you were there?"

"It wasn't perfect," snapped Blake. "I never said it was. There were plenty of people who were really awful. But I don't think indiscriminate murder is the best solution, especially when you also start targeting any Faunus who disagrees with you!"

"You and your parents stood in the way of progress," Adam growled. "I was getting justice for the Faunus race, and you stood in my way."

"What you were doing was  _not_  justice," Blake countered. "Justice is making the world a better place, not filling it with more hate and suffering."

"I'm hurting them so that they can't do the same to us!" Adam shot back.

"You're making them want to hurt us more!"

"As if they need a  _reason_  to hate us!"

Blake hissed, struggling to control her rising anger. When she felt her emotions were under control again, she spoke softly.

"What about Weiss?"

Adam sneered.

"The Schnee? What about her?"

"We were the thing she grew up being afraid of," Blake said frankly. "Like me with dogs. The White Fang was like the police dog at that rally."

Adam scoffed.

"What because we stole from her daddy's company? We were just taking back what-"

"Adam, we killed her uncle," Blake interrupted. "When she was twelve."

Adam actually stopped for a moment.

" _We_  didn't," he muttered. "I was fifteen then. Not that I wouldn't have; that bastard had it coming!"

"You think she knew that?" asked Blake. "You think she understood it? To her it was just us hurting her and her family. Her father was awful enough before, you think he got better after his brother was murdered?"

"Oh, am I supposed to feel bad for the Schnee princess because her daddy wasn't always nice to her?"

Blake sighed.

"Adam, I don't know everything that you've been through. You've told me some, but I don't  _really_  know. But I want you to imagine for a second the people who put you down and beat you and tried to turn you into a slave, and I want you to imagine all of that coming from your own family."

Adam opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. For the first time since Blake had met him, Adam really didn't know what to say.

"And you know what?" asked Blake. "That isn't an excuse for Weiss to decide that Faunus are all criminals. It was still wrong for her to think that. But more violence wasn't going to change her mind. And she  _did_  change her mind! What she needed was to meet a Faunus face to face and see that we're not monsters."

"And now you think you can change them all?" asked Adam. There was still scorn in his voice, but it was softer now, less certain.

"I think I can change enough of them," Blake answered. "It might be slow, but I'd rather crawl forwards than sprint backwards."

"Naïve," muttered Adam, looking away.

The two Faunus sat in silence after that. Blake just let Adam think about what she'd said.

_You need to be punished for everything you've done, Adam. But at the same time, I want to see you change. I have to believe that you can because if so… then I know anyone can._


	37. Cunning Challenge: Glynda's Failure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Cunning Challenge prompt. This one was "The only mission Glynda ever failed" submitted to me by Sh1f7er. Literally my first time writing Glynda, but I think it turned out well enough.

As the Bullhead sped off over the city, the red-cloaked girl turned towards Glynda.

"You're a Huntress," she murmured. Her face lit up as she squealed "Can I have your autograph?"

As Glynda met the girl's silver eyes, she was reminded of a time she had needed the intervention of an older Huntress, and of the only mission she ever failed.

* * *

Glynda knelt in the bushes beside of a massive gorge in the earth. She could see a large cave at the bottom of the ravine. Bushes and trees growing near the mouth made it difficult for an unpracticed eye to notice the cave, but the damage to their branches revealed to Glynda that several large creatures made the cave their home.

After two days, she had finally tracked the Beringels that were threatening a nearby village back to their den. Now she just needed to determine if they were currently inside the den. If so, she could use her Semblance to collapse the cave and complete her mission just like that.

Glynda smiled. As a fourth year she was finally going out on solo missions. This would be the first real test of her abilities without the rest of team GREN to back her up, and it looked like she was going to pass without any difficulty at all.

She was carefully watching the cave mouth for any signs of movement when she heard a low rumbling behind her. Glynda spun around to see a large Beringel crouching just a few feet behind her, readying itself to pounce.

Glynda threw herself backwards off the cliff edge just as the Grimm sprang forwards to grab her. She avoided its grasp by inches and plummeting towards the bottom of the ravine. As she fell, the Huntress in training whipped her riding crop at the Beringel, and a boulder the size of a motorcycle detached itself from the cliff face and flew towards the Grimm.

Glynda landed at the bottom of the gorge in a roll, glad that she had chosen a loose-fitting bodysuit rather than the pencil skirt and blouse she wore at school. She sprang back to her feet just in time to see the Beringel raise its massive arms and catch the rock she'd hurled at it, nearly falling over from the force.

Still, the Grimm wouldn't be able to move quickly until it set down the boulder. That was enough for Glynda. She flicked her crop to the side and gave the Beringel a quick telekinetic shove. Already struggling to hold the rock, it lost its balance and toppled over into the ravine.

Even as it fell, Glynda heard the sound of heavy movement to her right and realized that she was standing directly next to the cave. She turned towards the sound and raised a telekinetic barrier just as another Beringel came charging towards her out of the cave mouth. The Grimm bounced off her shield, but there was no time to rest before a third Beringel, this one nearly twice Glynda's height followed it out of the cave. Before the Huntress could react, its fire hydrant sized fist slammed into her barrier, shattering it with a sound like breaking glass. The fist hit her in the chest, knocking her backwards off her feet.

Glynda sprang back to her feet as quickly as she could, backing away from the monsters. The two smaller Grimm moved to flank their larger companion, who was standing upright and eyeing Glynda with a predatory gaze. She noticed off-color plates of bone armor covering the Beringel's back.

_A Silverback. I didn't anticipate facing such a creature. This will be more difficult than I expected._

For a moment no one moved, Huntress and Grimm simply staring each other down. Then one of the smaller Beringels leapt forwards. Reacting immediately, Glynda whipped her riding crop at it, hurling a large rock into the creature's side.

Glynda turned and sprinted down the ravine away from the Grimm, hoping to gain some distance. But as she heard the other two Beringels close behind her she realized it wouldn't be that easy.

The Huntress spotted a large boulder up ahead and lifted it with her Semblance. She spun around to face her enemies and telekinetically threw the boulder at them. It hit the smaller Beringel, knocking it off its feet, but the Silverback leapt over its companion with its fists raised for a devastating hammer blow. Rather than trying to stop the massive Grimm, Glynda directed a telekinetic blast at the ground, launching herself up out of the way of the attack.

Landing at the top of the ravine, Glynda thought she had enough space now. She spun her riding crop in a circle, gathering her energy for a single overwhelming attack. But as she was building power, the Silverback grabbed one of its companions by the scruff of the neck and hurled the smaller Grimm at her.

Glynda's eyes widened as the Beringel flew at her, howling with fury. Caught in the middle of preparing for an attack, she knew she wouldn't be able to react in time to stop it. In the fraction of a second that she had to think, panic began to set in.

That was when a white blur crashed into the side of the Beringel, slamming it into the side of the ravine with an earthshaking crash.

The blur resolved itself into a girl just barely older than Glynda. She had fair skin and dark hair that was red at the tips. She wore gray clothing and a white cape with a hood. Her twin scimitars were embedded in the Beringel's side all the way to the hilts.

_That's Summer Rose! She graduated last year; her team won the Vytal Festival!_

Summer turned her gaze towards the other two Grimm, eliciting a growl from the Silverback. Before the first Beringel was even finished dissolving into smoke, she withdrew her scimitars and threw herself towards its companions.

The two Grimm sprinted forwards to meet her, with the smaller one in the lead. It threw a punch at her, but she leapt to the side to avoid it. Her scimitars lashed out as she did so, carving bloody gashes across the Beringel's side.

The Grimm swung its forearm at Summer, and this time she didn't move to dodge. But as the blow hit her in the shoulder, her body exploded into white rose petals which scattered over the creature. An instant later they rushed back together, reforming the Huntress in midair, eye to eye with the monster. She swung her scimitars in an intersecting cut that slit the Beringel's throat.

By then the Silverback was about to reach Summer, but Glynda had recovered from her surprise. She unleashed the power that she had been building earlier in a blast of telekinetic force that knocked the Alpha Grimm away from its target.

As quickly as she could, Glynda lifted one of the same rocks that she had thrown earlier and launched it at the Silverback. For a second it looked like it would hit while the Grimm was still recovering. But at the last moment the massive Beringel rose to its feet, caught the boulder, and hurled it directly at Glynda. The Huntress in training jumped off the edge of the cliff just before the boulder impacted, shaking the entire ravine and dislodging rocks from the sides.

At the same time, Summer rushed towards the Beringel. She struck at its chest with her scimitars, but they bounced off the Grimm's bony armor. The creature retaliated with a massive hammer blow. Summer danced out of the way and counterattacked, but her blade's still couldn't pierce the monster's flesh.

_She's faster than it, but she's going to have a hard time getting through that armor._

Glynda waved her crop in a circle, and the rocks that had fallen from the side of the ridge lifted off the ground. While Summer fought with the Silverback, Glynda smashed the smaller rocks together, forming them into an oversized stone spear that hovered above her head.

"Summer!" Glynda called out. The older girl cast a quick glance back at her and nodded.

The Beringel swung its forearm at Summer, and the Huntress exploded into rose petals to avoid the blow. She reformed while the Grimm was recovering from the attack and kicked it in the face, launching herself away from it.

As soon as her line of fire was clear, Glynda hurled the stone spear, grunting with exertion as the poured all of her strength into the telekinetic throw. The Silverback recovered from Summer's kick just in time to see the spear hit it in the chest, lifting it off its feet and crushing it against the side of the ravine. The force of the blow shattered the spear and sent dust flying into the air throughout the gorge.

Glynda and Summer stumbled away from the dead Grimm, coughing and waving their hands in front of their faces to clear the dust away. When both girls could breathe again, they turned towards each other.

"Thank you," began Glynda. "I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't shown up when you did."

"You're welcome," replied Summer with a smile. "I was in the area and I heard the sound of your fight. But I'll bet you would have figured something out without me. You're strong, and you have good instincts." She paused for a moment. "I guess you know my name already. What's yours?"

"Glynda Goodwitch," replied the Huntress in training, offering her hand. Summer shook it, and then looked around the ravine.

"It looks like we got them all."

"Yes," agreed Glynda, turning towards the cave the Beringels had come from. With a flick of her crop, she used her Semblance to pile up several boulders at the mouth of the cave to prevent any other Grim from using it.

"That's cool," commented Summer.

Glynda just sighed. "This was supposed to be my first solo mission. It looks like I failed."

Summer frowned at the younger girl. "How do you figure?"

"I needed you to save me from them," answered Glynda frankly. "It was a solo mission, and I needed your help."

"So?" asked Summer. "Needing help doesn't mean you failed. Everybody needs help sometimes."

"But it was my mission," protested Glynda.

Summer shook her head. "Tell your teachers what happened. Let them decide if you failed. I'm pretty sure they'll agree with me."

"Alright," replied Glynda, still not entirely convinced. "In any case, I'm going to get stronger so that I won't need your help next time."

"I'm sure you will," agreed Summer cheerfully. "Maybe one day soon you'll be saving me."

"I will," declared Glynda. "I promise."

* * *

Glynda looked down at this girl, the spitting image of her mother. She had the same face, the same eyes, and the same brave spirit.

_Summer, I never did get the chance to save you like you saved me. It was the only mission I ever failed… But maybe now I can make it up to you just a bit._

The professor's face hardened.

"You're coming with me, young lady!"


	38. Salem's Master

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt this week was "Salem is revealed to be answering to her own superior, who happens to be the last person you'd expect."

Hazel stood before his master's throne with Emerald and Mercury beside him. They had just given their full report of the Battle of Haven, and it was obvious that Salem was not pleased. She did not look at her subordinates for some time after they finished their story, instead staring off to the side, pondering. After several minutes of silence, she finally spoke.

"I wish to speak with Hazel alone. Leave us."

Emerald and Mercury glanced at one another, clearly uncertain. But they obeyed Salem's order without a word.

"Ma'am?" Hazel asked once they were alone.

Salem rose from her throne. "Follow me."

The Queen of Grimm led her subordinate through the halls and down the winding stairways of her keep, deeper than Hazel had ever been before. They were far underground when Salem spoke again.

"Your failure is extremely disappointing. I thought your desire for revenge against Ozpin was enough to motivate you, but it seems I was mistaken."

Hazel remained silent, accepting his master's criticism.

"Even so, I am not sure I am ready to cast you aside just yet," Salem continued. "My master will decide your fate."

Hazel's eyes widened. He had long suspected that Salem served another, but it was shocking to hear her admit it, much less to introduce him to her superior. Hazel tried to wrap his head around the true meaning of this meeting.

Salem came to a stop in a wide, dimly lit hallway before an ancient wooden door. She dropped to one knee and bowed her head. Hazel quickly followed suit, readying himself to come face to face with the God of Darkness.

As if reading his mind, Salem whispered "It's not who you think it is."

Hazel glanced at her, surprise written on his face.

"You're certain of that?"

"I am," confirmed Salem. "Surprise is one of his greatest weapons, and it is one he wields with great effectiveness."

At that moment, the massive door began to creak slowly open. Three figures dressed in red robes advanced quickly towards the kneeling figures. The one in the center wore a wide brimmed hat the same color as his clothing.

"After all," continued Salem. "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition."


	39. Cunning Challenge: Walk Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Cunning Challenge. The prompt was "Write a piece focusing on any character with the song Walk by the Foo Fighters as inspiration" from Sungrasswriter. This was a different kind of prompt for me, but I think I did OK.

Taiyang felt the morning sunlight on his face and slowly cracked his eyes open. The blinds were open just enough to let that tiny bit of light in. Inches from his face, illuminated from behind by the dawn's first light, she lay, still sleeping. But as soon as Tai began to stir, her eyes fluttered open, and he found himself staring into two beautiful pools of silver.

"Hey," whispered Tai, voice still scratchy from sleep.

"Hi," Summer whispered back, her melodic voice sounding perfect.

Tai leaned forward and kissed her slowly. He thought her lips must have been the softest things that had ever existed. When he pulled away, he found her wearing a smile of utter bliss.

"We've got some time before the girls wake up," Summer whispered playfully.

"Oh yeah?" asked Tai with a glance over his shoulder at the door of their bedroom. "You have something in mind?"

When he looked back at Summer, her eyes were unfocused. He reached a hand out and touched her shoulder, but she didn't react.

"Summer?" Tai whispered. He shook her slightly, but still there was no response. Blood began to leak from her mouth in a narrow stream. "Summer!"

Tai opened his eyes and sat upright, breathing heavily. He looked beside him, but Summer wasn't there. He wasn't even in the bed that they had shared. He'd fallen asleep on the couch, just as he had every night since his wife died.

He laid his head back down as the tears began to leak from his eyes. She came to him in his dreams almost every night, and he always fell for it. He always believed that she was there with him, and then he lost her again as soon as he woke up.

"Daddy?" called a tiny voice from the stairway.

"Go back to bed, Yang," Tai called back, turning over onto his side.

"But Daddy, it's morning," Yang replied softly.

Tai reached a hand out to grab his scroll from the living room table. He opened it and found that Yang was right. Not only was it morning, but it was half an hour later than he was supposed to get up.

Slowly Tai dragged himself up from the couch and into the kitchen to make coffee. He meandered through a breakfast of coffee and some fruit before heading towards the door. It wouldn't be the first time that week he skipped a shower and wore the same clothes he had the day before. His clothes were all in their bedroom, and he didn't feel capable of going in there that morning.

"Daddy?" Yang called as Tai walked past her towards the front door. He looked down and met her lilac eyes.

"You've got your sister today, alright?" Tai asked. Yang nodded, and he left without another word, walking mechanically down the path towards Signal.

The day went by as slowly as any day before, but it was still too fast for Tai to notice any of it. His lectures were a whole lot of nothing. His papers sat ungraded. He didn't talk with any of the other teachers, not even Qrow. Finally he found himself shuffling back home, literally dragging his feet.

The first thing he did when he reached the cottage was sink back down onto the couch, feeling exhausted. He figured he'd probably microwave a frozen meal for dinner, or else order delivery. Maybe he'd let Yang pick.

"Yang!" he called out. "Ruby!"

It took Tai a second to realize that there hadn't been a response. When he did he stood up and called again. Still there was nothing.

Tai stalked through the house, yelling his daughters' names. He checked everywhere inside and outside the cottage before finally coming to his bedroom. He hesitated for a moment before pushing open the door. No one was there.

Panic began to set in and the world seemed to spin around him. Tai had to force it to stop before pulling out his scroll and bringing up Qrow's contact. He placed the call and immediately began tapping his foot with impatience.

"Hey," Qrow greeted after the third ring.

"The girls are missing," Tai blurted out immediately.

"What?" the former bandit cried, the sound of movement clear in the background.

"I came home, and they weren't here," Tai explained hurriedly.

Qrow groaned, and Tai could make out the sound of him running. "Would they go to the cliff?"

"I don't know," Tai replied, knowing that Qrow meant to Summer's grave.

Then he noticed something on the floor by his nightstand. Bending down he saw it was a broken picture frame. The photograph was missing, but he recognized the frame immediately.

"Raven," he whispered.

"She didn't take them, Tai," Qrow snapped.

"I know that," Tai snapped back. "But Yang has the photo of us in the old house."

"Dammit, you never should have her about Raven!" Qrow hissed.

Tai bit back a retort before yelling "Just go, now! I'll meet you there!"

He ended the call as he dashed out of the house, drawing on his Aura to grant him superhuman endurance. The house in the photograph was halfway across Patch. It would have taken all day for a little girl like Yang to reach it, especially if Ruby was with her. Fortunately it wasn't so terribly far as the crow flies.

Taiyang had been sprinting for half an hour when he caught sight of them coming the other way. Qrow was carrying Ruby with one arm and holding Yang's hand with the other. When she saw her father, Yang broke away from Qrow and ran towards him with tears pouring down her face.

Tai reached his daughter at full speed and scooped her up into his arms. He held her as tight as he could while she bawled into his chest. A few of his own tears worked their way down his cheeks.

"Daddy!" called Ruby excitedly from Qrow's arms. "Uncle Qrow killed all the monsters!" Tai's eyes widened as he met his brother-in-law's gaze.

"Beowolves," Qrow explained. "Half a dozen of them. If I'd been a minute later…" Tai's face went white as Qrow trailed off.

Completely failing to read the mood, Ruby continued to babble about Qrow slaying the creatures of Grimm as they walked home. Yang eventually stopped crying, but she remained silent for the rest of the evening. Tai got them carry-out burgers and put the girls to bed as soon as they were done eating.

It was dusk when he joined Qrow outside the cottage. The former bandit was facing the woods, visibly seething. Tai started to speak, but Qrow whirled around and decked him in the mouth before he could get a word out. Tai collapsed to the ground as his brother-in-law shouted at him.

"You don't get to just shut down this anymore!"

Tai looked up, anger building inside him. Then he forced himself to take a breath.

"I know. I need to do better."

"And?" growled Qrow.

"And I will. Starting now, I will."

"Good," Qrow snarled, pointing at the cottage. "Because those two are the only good thing left in my life, and I am  _not_ losing them!"

Tai picked himself up as Qrow stalked off into the woods. He went back inside the house and glanced at the couch. He stared at it for a moment before sighing and walking upstairs to his bedroom.

* * *

Tai felt exhausted when he woke to the sound of his scroll's alarm. He'd spent most of the night lying awake in the bed that he used to share with Summer. All he wanted to do was turn over and go back to sleep. He laid there for a while, just listening as the alarm grew steadily louder, before finally dragging himself upright and turning it off.

He showered quickly and got dressed before going downstairs and turning on the stove. He began pulling ingredients from the cupboards and refrigerator and mixing them into a bowl. He walked over to the stairs while whisking and called out "Breakfast!"

Tai blinked as he realized how dead his voice had sounded. He forced himself to smile and tried again.

"Yang, Ruby, come down for breakfast!" he yelled cheerfully. He returned to the kitchen as soon as he heard them rising from their beds.

By the time the girls came downstairs there was a short stack of chocolate chip pancakes on each of their plates. Ruby immediately ran to her seat, but Yang walked up to her father first, trembling slightly.

"Daddy," she whispered.

Tai bent down to eye level with her.

"We'll talk about it when I get home from school," he said softly. "Can you look after your sister today?"

Yang nodded.

"It's all right if you can't," Tai added. "I could take the day off."

Yang shook her head. "I'll be OK."

Tai nodded and kissed her on the forehead. Yang sat down beside her sister and began eating.

Tai stood up and leaned against one of the counters, staring off into space. After a moment he realized he was zoning out, and checked on the girls. Yang was helping Ruby cut her pancakes. Tai watched her for a moment before remembering that it was his job to take care of that. He stepped in and finished cutting Ruby's pancakes, allowing Yang to go back to her own meal.

After that he took a couple of pancakes for himself and dug in. They were nowhere near as good as Summer's cookies, but they were still pretty good. Eventually, as he was sitting there eating breakfast with his daughters, Tai realized that he was smiling. He wasn't forcing himself this time.


	40. A Traitor in Their Midst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this one was "One of the main cast is secretly working with the villains."

Ruby sat up in her sleeping bag suddenly, the nightmares that had woken her fading from her memory immediately. All she could remember was hearing Pyrrha scream, just as she had many times before in her dreams.

Ruby breathed in the woodland air, trying to calm her racing heart. They had left Mistral two days prior bound for Wind Path. Supposedly they could find a smuggler there who could get them to Atlas.

She glanced around their campsite and wasn't entirely surprised to see Jaune missing from his sleeping bag. He still spent most nights training with Pyrrha's recording. Ruby knew it wasn't entirely healthy, but she also wasn't sure what to do for him. What did surprise her was that Oscar's sleeping bag was also empty.

Ruby slipped out of her own bag and grabbed Crescent Rose. Making as little noise as possible, she moved to the edge of the campsite. She closed her eyes and listened for any sign of where the two boys might be. She heard a voice that sounded like Oscar's and began moving in that direction.

As Ruby crept through the woods, Oscar's voice grew louder, though she still couldn't really make out his words. She was sure she was getting close when an armored hand reached out of a bush and waved to her vigorously. She nearly cried out when she caught sight of Jaune's face, one finger pressed to his lips.

Ruby pressed a finger to her own lips to signal that she understood. Jaune pointed towards the sound of Oscar's voice, and the two Hunters snuck closer while remaining hidden in the foliage. Looking out into a small clearing, she spotted Oscar.

Then her eyes widened as she saw who- or rather what- he was talking to.

Ruby had never seen a creature like it before, but it could only be a Grimm. Its bulbous black head floated five feet off the ground, several red tentacles dangling down from it. Each tentacle ended in a wickedly sharp point that immediately made Ruby think of the many stab wounds that had been found in Professor Lionheart's body. She had to choke back a gasp of dismay as she heard Oscar speak to the Grimm.

"I could always just take the Relic from them now."

"No," came a woman's voice from the Grimm, echoing slightly as if coming through a tunnel. The voice was cool and commanding, and Ruby felt certain that it was Salem. "Continue to report their location. We will take the Relic while maintaining your cover."

"Yes, my Lady," Oscar replied.

"Traitor!"

Ruby jumped as Jaune walked forward out of the trees and drew his sword, staring down Oscar. Hesitating for a moment, she stepped out of hiding as well, extending her own weapon.

"It doesn't look like you will be able to maintain your cover any longer," Salem remarked coldly.

"So it would seem," Oscar stated flatly. "I'll just have to kill these two and take the Relic while everyone else is asleep."

"Professor," Ruby whispered. "How could you?"

Oscar's eyes widened in surprise for a moment, but then his face became contorted with anger.

"You fool!" he shouted with rage that Ruby had never heard from him before. "I'm not Ozpin!"

Ruby and Jaune both gasped in shock.

"Oscar?" Ruby cried out. "But how? Why didn't Ozpin tell us?"

Oscar laughed cruelly. "My master possesses powers that fool couldn't begin to imagine. He only sees what she wants him to. He has no idea this conversation is even happening!"

"But I don't understand," Jaune cried. "When?"

"Oh, I was working for Salem long before Ozpin  _stole my body_  from me," Oscar sneered.

"What?" whispered Ruby. "How did she know you were the next one he would possess?"

Salem's voice came again from the Grimm.

"I didn't. I simply killed or recruited every teenage boy on Remnant whose name started with an O."

Ruby and Jaune gasped in disbelief.

"Most of them came to my side willingly," Salem continued with twisted glee. "It wasn't that hard once they learned what Ozpin had been doing to people like them for the past few millennia. Isn't that right, Oliver?"

A boy around Oscar's age stepped out of the shadows on the other side of the clearing. A shotgun rested in his hands. He glowered at Ruby and Jaune as he spoke.

"That's right, ma'am."

"Oswald?" Salem asked. Ruby and Jaune heard footsteps behind them and turned to see a slightly older boy holding a longsword much like Jaune's.

"You got it," the boy said with an arrogant smirk.

"Omar," Salem continued. "Owen. Osmund. Ojiro. Orlando. Otis. Otto. Octavius. Odysseus. Obadiah. Odion. Odhran. Orion. Osborn. Ourson."

Soon Ruby and Jaune were surrounded, the boys appearing out of the shadows like ghosts. They were armed with weapons ranging from basic guns and blades to mechashift weapons of decent complexity. Ruby couldn't guess how skilled any of them were, but if they all at least had their Auras unlocked then this would be a difficult fight.

"Oh," whispered Jaune somberly.

"O," agreed Ruby.


	41. The Shattered Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Other 'true' legends in the history of Remnant other than the Maidens or the Two Brothers."

When the Two Brothers looked upon their final creation both were satisfied for the first time in their existence. Humanity was as they had intended it. The Four Gifts set them apart from all other things, and the gods saw that this was good.

However, humanity's place in the world might not have been assured for long, for the creatures of Grimm still stalked the face of Remnant, continuing the endless destruction that their god had set them on. Humanity was helpless against their onslaught and was driven to the brink of extinction. Seeing one of his creations threaten another so, the God of Darkness descended on Remnant, intending to blind the Grimm so that they could no longer menace humankind.

However, there was one among the Grimm who was possessed of human shape and speech, as well as a labyrinthine cunning that exceeded all other beings. She had no intention of allowing humanity such a respite.

The Grimm Woman approached the God of Darkness and begged him to spare her kind. She asked that the Grimm at least be allowed to see each other and the face of their beloved creator so that they would not be thrown into total isolation.

The God of Darkness relented, and instead of blinding his creations, he cast a subtler pall over their senses. The creatures would see the world hazily, all things appearing beneath their notice. The only things they could see clearly were their god and his darkness.

This was exactly as the Grimm Woman desired. She knew that a sliver of the god's dark power existed within each human, growing weaker or stronger based on the choices they made. So it was that the Grimm would attack any human whose heart was filled with negative emotions, those emotions acting as a beacon in an otherwise dull world.

Humanity was still in danger, but now it was the God of Light's turn to act. Drawing upon his great power, he created a magnificent Sphere of silver which glowed with an almighty light that was inimical to the creatures of Grimm (seeing his brother's mistake, he ensured that  _only_  the Grimm were harmed by it). The light was so powerful that if the Sphere were set upon the ground it would annihilate all the Grimm from the face of Remnant. Unwilling to destroy his brother's creation completely, the God of Light instead set the sphere high in the heavens where it shone down, weakening the Grimm so that they were no longer a threat to humanity.

The Grimm Woman was outraged by this, and immediately began scheming to see the Sphere destroyed. Donning a shawl of darkness to protect herself from the light, she traveled to the home of the Keeper of the Relics, the man chosen to protect the physical form of the gods' Four Gifts.

The Keeper was shocked to see the Grimm Woman, and nearly fled from her. But she convinced him that she meant no harm. She lamented that her kind was capable only of destruction, and wished that they might be able to live in harmony with humans. The Keeper agreed, and suggested that the Relics might be used to grant Grimm the power of the other three Gifts.

The Keeper brought out the Relics, ready to test his theory. But as soon as the opportunity presented itself, the Grimm Woman stole the Relic of Destruction. The Keeper tried to stop her, but with her shawl protecting her she overpowered him. She unleashed the Relic's power, shattering the Sphere in the sky. Though a great fragment of the Sphere remained, its light was now too weak to stop the Grimm, and they set upon humanity once more.

But all was not lost. Two fragments of the broken Sphere, each no bigger than a grain of sand, fell to Remnant below and became lodged in a young girl's eyes. The girl cried out and squeezed her eyes shut in pain. When she opened them again they glowed with a magnificent silver light that vanquished any Grimm she looked upon.

With this power, she became a defender of humanity, the first of the Silver Eyed Warriors.


	42. The Evil League of Evil: Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This week, for Writing Prompt Wednesday's 100th prompt, we wrote sequels to previous stories that we'd done! This was a sequel to my Evil League of Evil story.

Oscar sat in front of the campfire, feeling a bit awkward. After dinner, everyone had split off into small groups to talk or gone off on their own to do something, leaving Oscar on his own.

They'd spent a week in Mistral after the battle at Haven before leaving for a port in the north of Anima two days prior. Everyone had gotten a chance to get to know each other and had overcome some of the initial awkwardness. Even Weiss and Ilia were getting along now.

Oscar was the only one that many of them still had trouble dealing with. It wasn't that anyone was  _mean_  to him or anything, it was just that none of them seemed to be able to ignore Ozpin's presence long enough to focus on Oscar himself. That meant that they usually ignored Oscar during quiet moments like this.

Ruby had always been the exception to that rule, but ever since she reunited with her team, they'd taken up a lot more of her attention. Oscar tried very hard not to feel jealous about that.

Yet, at the moment it wasn't her team that had Ruby's attention, it was her baby. She'd stripped Crescent Rose after dinner and spent the next twenty minutes furiously polishing every component with a very un-Ruby-like expression of anger on her face.

"Come  _on_ ," Oscar heard her mutter. "Why won't you come off?" He was about to speak up when Yang beat him to it.

"What's the matter, sis?" asked the blonde from where she was sitting with the three Faunus in the group.

"I don't know what's wrong!" answered Ruby, sounding distraught. "I can't get this rust off."

From behind Ruby, Weiss poked her head out of her tent.

"Did you say rust?" asked the former heiress. "I've been polishing Myrtenaster since dinner and it's still looking rusty."

Jaune ran over from where he'd been practicing his swordplay a few yards from camp. He held up Crocea Mors to show everyone the corrosion on the blade.

"I noticed it too all of a sudden. This is weird."

Qrow stood up from where he'd been sitting and drew Harbinger. Sure enough, the blade was tinted reddish-brown. After that, everyone checked their weapons. Those that were coated in some way were fine, but any exposed steel was covered in rust. Yang's arm also appeared to be safe. Oscar checked his cane and found it to be rust free.

"It isn't made of iron," supplied Ozpin. "Mostly silver and brass."

"Do you have any idea what's causing this?" Oscar asked.

"Well…" Ozpin began to answer, but he stopped when the fire at the center of the campsite roared up for a moment and then turned cobalt blue.

Silence hung over the camp as everyone stared in confusion at the azure flames that now lit them all with a strange, cold glow. Oscar had heard that blue fire was hotter than yellow or orange fire, but seeing that unusual color on everyone's faces sent a chill down his spine.

"Get your weapon," ordered Ozpin, panic leaking into his mental voice. "Now."

"Guys, Ozpin says to grab your weapons!" Oscar called out, extending his cane and taking up a fighting stance.

Yang, Blake, Sun, and Ilia stood up and grabbed their weapons. Ruby reassembled Crescent Rose as quickly as she could. Weiss emerged from her tent with her rapier in hand. Ren and Nora rushed out of the tent they'd been sharing, weapons ready. Jaune turned to face away from the fire and raised his shield. Qrow transformed Harbinger into its cannon form and pointed it out into the woods around them, searching for some sign of a threat.

As Oscar turned to face the trees as well, he accidentally kicked his backpack and heard a squish. He glanced down and nudged the pack open with his foot. Inside, he saw his last apple had turned brown and soft. Kicking the backpack had smeared it all over his clothes. Oscar frowned in confusion; an hour ago it had been fine.

"Oscar, eyes up," Ozpin reminded him hurriedly.

Oscar lifted his head and began searching the trees, but it was difficult to see anything when the whole scene was cast in the blue light of the fire. He couldn't pick out any sign of motion beyond the dancing of the flames.

"What are we looking for?" asked Ruby from her place to Oscar's right. "Grimm?"

"People," replied Ozpin. "Seven of them." His fear was permeating Oscar's mind, maybe even more so than when they'd encountered Hazel.

"Ozpin says seven people," Oscar called out. He could feel the others glancing at him, but they quickly returned their gazes to the trees.

As Oscar continued to search the woods for any sign of movement, words began to appear in his head. It wasn't clear like when Ozpin spoke to him. It was more like the professor had a song stuck in his head, and the words were leaking into Oscar's mind.

_When the hearthfire turns to blue,_   
_What to do? What to do?_   
_Run outside, run and hide._

The frightening words were sung in a cheerful tune, like a children's song. They continued to run through Oscar's mind, filling him with dread.

_When your bright sword turns to rust,_   
_Who to trust? Who to trust?_   
_Stand alone, standing stone._

The wind whistled through the trees, sending a chill down Oscar's spine. Leaves blew into the clearing, and Oscar noticed that many of them were gray and shriveled. He recognized the signs of blight, a farmer's worst nightmare.

_When all the leaves on the tree have died,_   
_Where to hide? Where to hide?_   
_Try to flee, hope they don't see._

Behind him, Oscar heard the loud, rapid bangs of Blake's weapon firing. Everyone turned to look where she was shooting just as her gun fell silent.

"I thought I saw something," she muttered. "If it was there it's gone now."

As Oscar turned back to face the woods in front of him, he saw a stark white figure out in the trees, but no sooner did he try to focus on it than it disappeared.

_See a woman pale as snow,_   
_Silent come and silent go?_   
_What's their plan? What's their plan?_

Oscar continued to search the forest for any sign of movement. He blinked once, and when he opened his eyes again he was startled to see a man standing between two trees, some thirty yards outside of the clearing.

The man was tall and thin, with pale skin and curly white hair that reached to his shoulders. He wore a dark colored tunic and pants and carried a sword in one hand. His sharp features were twisted into a grin as manic and cruel as the one Cinder had worn when she taunted them about Lionheart's betrayal.

But the man's most striking feature was his eyes, which were black as coals and did not shine in the firelight.

_When his eyes are black as crow,_   
_Where to go? Where to go?_   
_Near and far. Here they are._

Oscar tried to call out to alert the others, but all he managed was a choking sound. Beside him, Qrow raised his weapon and fired, the gunshot ringing out through the clearing.

The black-eyed man stepped to the side, moving impossibly fast and yet showing no more hurry than if he'd been taking a leisurely stroll. Qrow's bullet struck a branch behind the man. He took another graceful step and disappeared behind a tree.

_When your food has turned to rot,_   
_Should you fight or should you not?_   
_Run away, live today._

Oscar felt his whole body shaking with fright. He tightened his grip on his cane, but that only caused his hands to shake more. He cast his gaze back and forth over the trees, searching for the black-eyed man, but he saw nothing. Then a cool voice sounded through the clearing, just loud enough to be heard.

"Ozpin…"

_See a man without a face,_

Oscar turned towards the voice and saw a figure emerging from the trees. He wore a hooded cloak that hung heavily on his frame. Even as he stepped into the blue light of the fire, everything beneath that cloak was hidden in impenetrable shadow.

_Move like ghosts from place to place?_

Gazing into the shadows beneath the man's hood, Oscar's heart was gripped with fear. Memories from when he was a young child came back to him suddenly, memories of trying to sleep while surrounded in endless darkness, of feeling alone and terrified.

Looking into the man's face, it felt like that same darkness that had scared him as a child had donned a cloak and was now walking steadily towards him.

_What's their plan? What's their plan?_

Oscar raised his cane in trembling hands and pointed it at the shadow-wreathed man.

_Chandrian. Chandrian._


	43. Cunning Challenge: Corsac

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's another Cunning Challenge. The prompt was "Corsac reminisces about life before the White Fang," submitted by Yukon_Wolf.

Corsac lay in his bunk in the jail on the edge of Kuo Kuana. He could hear the other members of the White Fang who were imprisoned with him snoring in their cells, but he found he couldn't sleep.

Fennec was dead. His brother was dead, and the people of Menagerie had turned against the White Fang. In one night all of Corsac's ambitions had turned to ash. His beliefs had been tested, and it seemed they had failed.

Corsac rose from his bunk and looked out of the small window in his cell. Through it he could see the mountains that separated Kuo Kuana from the desert beyond. He and Fennec had journeyed into the desert a few times when they were younger. It had been the greatest test of their training as warriors.

The desert was lethal beyond measure. Blisteringly hot during the day and freezing cold at night, every moment out there tested the body and spirit. The winds were cutting and could fill a man's lungs with sand if he took a breath at the wrong time. Corsac and his brother had nearly been buried alive by a haboob on one of their journeys. On the rare occasion that it rained, the desert would flood quickly and sometimes fatally.

The Grimm were an ever present danger as well, but even they weren't as bad as the Great Wurms and Dune Dragons that stalked the sands. Fighting against such monsters had required every ounce of the Albains' combined skill.

And yet for all of its danger, the desert was beautiful. The expanses of sand that seemed as vast as the ocean itself, the mountains standing triumphantly over the wastes, the colors that the sun painted onto the earth and sky alike when it rose or set, it moved Corsac's heart like nothing else could. He loved Menagerie, maybe even more than he loved his brother. He knew that Fennec had felt the same way.

Yet for as long as Corsac could remember, Menagerie had been overcrowded. Even when he and Fennec had been young children roaming the streets they had seen that there were too many people and not enough space, enough houses, enough food. Their parents had done what they could working for the chieftain to provide for everyone, but it never seemed to be enough.

And more kept coming. With every act of aggression by the humans, more Faunus would flock to their one safe haven. With each passing year the city became even more packed, Menagerie choking on the constant tide of people fleeing persecution.

The White Fang had promised an end to the discrimination that created these refugees, and the Albains had supported them wholeheartedly. But nothing changed. Refugees kept coming, and though Corsac would never dream of turning them away, he knew there was no place for them on Menagerie. Ghira's failure was as evident from Kuo Kuana as it was anywhere else on Remnant.

Only when Sienna Khan took command did things improve. With her fighting to protect them, the Faunus finally felt safe in the kingdoms, and the neverending stream of refugees slowed. Some even left Menagerie to return to their former homes, and for the first time Kuo Kuana felt a bit less crowded. Corsac remembered working tirelessly with his brother in support of Sienna's Fang, truly believing that he had a chance of saving his home.

It was then that they had been called on to leave Menagerie. It was a brief assignment, just a few months in Mistral helping the High Leader with a large scale attack on a Faunus-trafficking organization. That was where he and Fennec had met Adam Taurus.

There, in a kingdom whose history of racism was as long and as infamous as that of Atlas, they found a man with the drive to end humanity's oppression of the Faunus by any means necessary. He was young and inexperienced, but with his youth came a fire that had long cooled in Ghira and even in Sienna.

He was also the most skilled fighter that Corsac had ever seen. During the attack, Adam had cut down dozens of Faunus traffickers. One of the enemies had pointed a gun in Fennec's face, and Corsac knew he wouldn't have been able to help his brother in time. An instant later Adam was between them, and the slaver was short an arm.

The Albains had returned to Menagerie certain that it would be Adam that led the White Fang to their final victory. It would be Adam who would save their home.

Corsac turned back to the bars of his cell, looking over where that certainty had led him. He sat down on his bunk, and the tears finally began to fall. He cried for his brother, but also for his home which would no longer have Fennec Albain striving to protect it.

The people of Menagerie supported Blake Belladonna now. After her father's failure, Corsac found it difficult to believe in her. But all he could do now was believe. His time bearing the torch was over, and it was clear he had done a poor job of it.

When his tears ran out, Corsac turned his gaze towards the window again, looking out over the land that he loved like his own family. The land that he had failed.

"Blake Belladonna," he whispered. "It's your turn now."


	44. Qrow's Last Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "Right before the last battle RWBY has with Salem's forces, all the adult/parental influences are in the same bar sharing a drink."

The Grimm surged forwards. They were endless, a tide of black fur pouring from the crags and pools surrounding Salem's keep. There had to be thousands of Beowolves and Creeps, their bodies virtually indistinguishable in the roiling mass of darkness. Even the larger Grimm were beyond counting.

By the end of the day they would all be dead… or everyone else would.

Qrow looked out into the horde, Harbinger in his hand. Spread out around him was the full strength of Remnant, humans and Faunus by the hundreds ready to lay down their lives to defeat Salem. There were soldiers from all four kingdoms and Menagerie, but it was the Huntsmen who were expected to win the day.

Time seemed to slow down as Qrow charged towards the Grimm. He lowered his shoulders as he brought Harbinger back for the first swing. He pushed off with his right foot, and his cape billowed out behind him.

He knew he was going to die today.

* * *

The night before the final battle, one of the Vacuan soldiers had gotten a neon bar sign from gods-knew-where and hooked it up to a portable generator near the edge of the camp. Everyone who had alcohol had come together around there and proudly formed the first bar in Evernight. They sat on crates, rocks, or the ground, talking and laughing or just sitting and drinking. Many of them would be dead by tomorrow evening.

Qrow had stayed there most of the night, working his way through a bottle of whiskey. He would have liked more, but there were a lot of people around. Keeping an entire bottle to himself was already pushing it in terms of greed.

Tai, Bart, and Peter sat together and talked for hours. Their conversation and their laughter were always just at the edge of Qrow's awareness. They kept a seat open for him, but didn't actually ask him to join. Qrow was glad for that. He felt like spending his last night alone.

* * *

Qrow came down on his left foot. The Grimm were getting closer, but still each second dragged by.

Qrow swore he'd kill a thousand of them before he went down. More would be better. Maybe he'd do even more than that. Tyrian was still out there, and still out for Ruby's blood. If Qrow found the assassin, he'd kill him. If he survived that, he'd go after Salem next.

But wherever it came from, Qrow knew his end was coming.

He pushed off with his left foot.

* * *

There was a huge group of Faunus from Menagerie towards one side of the bar. The Belladonnas stayed there for most of the evening, but they also went around mingling with people the other kingdoms. No one gave them any shit. Here, on what might be the last day any of them lived, they were way past racism.

"Qrow," Ghira greeted when they passed by him. Qrow nodded in reply.

"I know we've said this before," began Kali. "But thank you for everything you've done."

Qrow shrugged. "I did what I could. The kids made the rest happen."

"You kept Blake alive in Atlas and Vacuo," Ghira replied. "That's more than I know how to repay."

Qrow met the Faunus chieftain's eyes. There was fear in them, for his daughter and for all of them. But Qrow knew that the Belladonnas had faith too.

"Stay alive out there," he said firmly. "People are going to need you after this is over, your daughter especially."

Ghira and Kali nodded. They moved on to speak with Tai after that. Before long they retired to their tent. Qrow didn't know if they were going to have sex or spend the whole night whispering to each other. He didn't know what couples did in situations like this. He barely knew what couples did at all.

He took another drink.

* * *

Qrow came down on his right foot.

He could see which Grimm he was going to reach first. A single Beowolf was slightly ahead of the horde and directly in front of him. Qrow began to swing Harbinger forward, aiming for the monster's throat.

He wondered how much Aura he could afford to lose early on. He needed to save it if he was going to fight for as long as he needed to, if he was going to kill Tyrian. But he could afford to take a few blows from the Grimm, couldn't he?

He pushed off with his right foot.

* * *

Qrow saw Weiss walk past the bar. Earlier, when her teammates had gone to spend time with their parents, Weiss just followed Ruby and stood off to the side. Her entire family had died or abandoned her.

Qrow thought about going over to talk to the girl. He should be looking out for her now that Winter was gone. He owed that to his… whatever they had been in the end.

But before he could collect himself enough to stand, Weiss ran off. A little ways into the camp, Qrow could see her meeting up with her teammates. The four of them continued on until the tents blocked his view of them.

He nodded and managed a small smile. She'd found a new family, and Ruby and Yang would be better at that than he ever could. The last thing Weiss needed was some old drunk trying to take the place of her sister.

Qrow took another drink.

* * *

Qrow came down on his left foot.

Harbinger was midway through its swing now, the blade nearing the Beowolf's throat. The Grimm on either side of it began to turn their heads towards Qrow. He knew he should think of how to dispatch them as well, but all he could focus on was the Beowolf right in front of him, his blade drawing ever closer to its neck.

Maybe the soldiers behind Qrow would cover him with their gunfire. Maybe they wouldn't. Maybe he'd start taking damage sooner than he'd planned.

He pushed off with his left foot.

* * *

It was close to midnight when Bart and Peter turned in. Tai split from them and sat down beside Qrow, who offered him the mostly empty whiskey bottle. He took a swig and handed it back.

The two men sat in silence for a while. By the time Tai finally spoke, they were the only two left.

"I don't know if I'm ready for tomorrow," he said distantly.

"No one does," Qrow answered, his words slurring.

It was another minute before either of them spoke again. But finally Qrow blurted out what he was thinking, not entirely meaning to.

"Everything good in my life is because of you."

Tai glanced over at his brother-in-law, surprise written all over his face.

"That's not true," he tried to counter, but Qrow spoke up again.

"Yes it is. I'd have spent four years at Beacon and never said a thing about myself if you'd let me."

"What about Summer?" asked Tai.

"She helped," Qrow admitted. "She was the first person I even wanted to talk to. But you were the one who didn't take no for an answer. I'm so glad you made me get to know her."

Tai chuckled. "You're welcome."

"And Raven was less of a bitch when she was with you," Qrow continued, not noticing how Tai's face fell. "We were better siblings then than we were any other time.

"And Yang and Ruby, they were the only people I ever just... loved… without any bullshit getting in the way." He sank his head into his hands. "I think I'd have kept fighting even without them, but I wouldn'ta done as well cause I wouldn't really have cared that much. I'd pro'bly be dead by now."

"You'd have done better than me," Tai answered somberly. "I don't know what my life would be without those two."

Qrow lifted the bottle of whiskey and finished it in one swig before continuing.

"I think I'm gonna die tomorrow."

Tai flinched when he heard that. He stared at his brother-in-law, but Qrow wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Why would you say that?" Tai asked.

"If we lose, we lose," Qrow began. "If we win… I've been fighting Salem a long time. I don't know what's left for me after that."

"Qrow, Yang and Ruby will," Tai answered. "They're going to come back and-"

"What if they don't?" Qrow interrupted, tears starting to pour from his eyes. What if they die like Summer, and Leo, and James, and Winter, and Glynda, and Raven? I don't think I can handle that. Maybe if there was more to do, but not now, not at the end. It's better if I just leave it all on the field."

"You think I'd be OK with it?" yelled Tai, standing up from his seat. "You think I'd be OK if one of them didn't come back? But I'm not just giving up! I plan on being around for them when this is over."

"Good," said Qrow, cutting Tai off before he could continue. "They're probably going to need you."

Tai snarled and punched Qrow in the face. The caped Hunstman fell off the crate he'd been sitting on and collapsed in a pile on the ground.

"Get up!" shouted Tai. Qrow didn't move. Tai snarled and stormed off.

Qrow stayed there on the ground for the rest of the night, barely even shifting to get more comfortable. At some point while he was still awake, Tai came back and said something else to him.

* * *

Qrow came down on his right foot.

What had Tai said to him? He'd been so drunk and so tired by that point he couldn't even remember.

Harbinger began to cut into the Beowolf's neck. It went through fur, skin, muscle, and bone, so slowly that Qrow could feel how each one was different. Blood poured from the wound. As that curtain of red flowed over Qrow's weapon, Tai's words came back to him in a flash.

"You know the thing about those heroes who sacrifice themselves so that the good guys win? They never get to find out if it worked. They die not knowing if the people they wanted to save live or die. Is  _that_  something you think you can handle?"

Time was suddenly moving very fast. Qrow finished hacking through the Beowolf in front of him and whirled around to behead the ones beside it. He flew forward and continued cutting through the Grimm, a blur of motion that left a trail of bodies dissolving into smoke behind him. He didn't stop for a second, slicing apart each creature before it could even think of striking at him. He didn't plan on letting any of them touch his Aura.

Qrow let out a scream as he fought. He poured everything he had into that scream, all of his fear, and grief, and anger, but his defiance as well. It was a wordless litany, and it said one thing in no uncertain terms.

_Qrow Branwen was not dying today._


	45. The Aristocrats!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was "A world where the heroes serve Salem, and the villains serve Ozpin." Obviously I made it silly.

"Alright," declared Ruby. She and her teammates stood over the defeated forms of Watts, Tyrian, Cinder, and Hazel. "It's time to see who these guys were really working for!"

Ruby pulled back the curtain that covered the doorway deeper into the base. Everyone gasped when they saw the bespectacled man who was revealed.

"Professor Ozpin?!" came a chorus of voices.

"Yes, it was me!" cried the headmaster of Beacon.

"But that's impossible!" came a voice from the Seer Grimm that floated alongside the students.

"Master?" asked Blake.

"That can't be..." Salem continued. "Because  _I_  was working for Ozpin!"

Everyone gasped in surprise.

"But that's impossible!" cried Sage, the most that anyone present had ever heard him speak. "Ozpin was working for me!"

Everyone gasped in surprise.

"Ruff!" came a sound from the entrance. The group turned to see Zwei entering, a small group of Beowolves following him with their heads bowed. "Ruff ruff!"

Everyone gasped in surprise.

**Several shocking revelations later.**

"OK, so let me see if I've got this right," began Jaune. "Team WTCH was working for Ozpin, and Team RWBY was working for Salem, but Salem was working for Ozpin, and Ozpin was working for Sage."

Everyone nodded in confirmation, so Jaune continued.

"The Grimm were working for Zwei, and Adam was working for Yang, and Raven was working for Whitley, and the Shadow People were working for Sun, and Qrow was working for Cardin, and Velvet was working for Weiss, and Ironwood was actually Neo in disguise."

Again, everyone nodded.

"And Torchwick was working for money, and Nora was working for pancakes, and Zwei was working for belly-rubs, and Neo was… Neo, what were you working for?"

Neo held up a cue card that read "LOVE."

"Aaaaaww," everyone sighed.

"OK," continued Jaune. "So Neo was working for Torchwick, and Neon was working for Jacques, and Glynda was working for Neptune, and the God of Darkness was working for Henry. Is that everything?"

Jaune looked around and saw everyone nodding their heads.

"So who was working for me?" he asked. Behind him, Pyrrha raised her hand, but Jaune didn't see it. When no one else answered, he slumped his shoulders in disappointment.

"So now we all fight?" asked Yang.

"I mean, we could," answered Weiss. "But who would be fighting who?"

For a moment, no one answered, all trying to work out the complex web of alliances in their heads. Then, Nora broke the silence.

"Free for all!" screamed the hyperactive redhead.

In an instant, the entire group launched into action, each pummeling the person closest to them. Bullets flew, weapons were swung, and Auras shattered. Blood splattered onto the ground. Only when the last two combatants fell, striking each other down in the same second, did the curtain descend on the chaotic melee.

* * *

Shandromand leaned over his desk, eyeing TedOrAlive with fascination.

"But what would you call such a fanfiction?" he asked.

Ted gestured excitedly with his hands as if presenting a billboard with the title emblazoned on it.

"The Aristocrats!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who weren't aware, Shadromand is the guy who runs Writing Prompt Wednesday.


	46. Cunning Challenge: She Stole the Mecha?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another Cunning Challenge! This time the prompt was "What do you mean she stole the mecha?" submitted to me by SmallJon.

Torchwick snapped his fingers, and the curtain behind him was pulled back. Behind it sat a hulking metal behemoth, easily four meters tall. It was vaguely humanoid, but hunched over with weapons apparent on its arms and back. The red logo of the White Fang was embossed on its arms.

"That's a big robot," muttered Sun from his place in the crowd of new recruits.

"How did he get that?" whispered Blake.

"As some of you may have heard, this right here is Atlas's newest line of defense against all the scary things in the world," announced Torchwick, rapping the side of the machine. "And thanks to my employer, we've managed to snag a few before they, uh, hit the shelves.

"Now, many of your brothers have already moved down to our new operation in the southeast. If you'd rather stay within the city, that's fine, but if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in, this is the arsenal I can provide you. Any questions?"

The crowd of Faunus burst into cheers as Torchwick finished. All around Blake and Sun, veteran members and new recruits alike were shouting and waving their fists. Blake was shocked to see them so riled up by a human, so drawn in by what he was saying. Not to mention so ready to use military hardware to attack people.

"We should get out of here," she whispered, turning to Sun.

But no sooner had she said that then the lieutenant called out from the stage.

"Would all new recruits please come forward?"

"Well," exclaimed Sun, looking around and trying not to seem too awkward as the crowd moved past him and Blake. Pretty soon it was going to be obvious that they were trying to stay back. "What are we going to do?" he whispered to Blake.

"I'm thinking," she answered quickly, scanning the room for a way out.

Onstage, Torchwick was leaning against the Atlesian robot, glancing over the crowd. He stopped when he saw the two new recruits who weren't moving, his face twisting into a scowl.

"He sees us," muttered Sun.

Torchwick tossed his cigar aside and advanced towards the front of the stage, eyes locked on Blake and Sun. The monkey Faunus waved at him, doing absolutely nothing to dispel the tension.

That was when Blake caught sight of a junction box.

"He can't see in the dark," she whispered. She drew her weapon, taking just a moment to aim before firing. A moment later the overhead lamps went out, plunging the room into darkness.

"Don't let them get away!" yelled Torchwick, but with his Faunus night vision, Sun could see the criminal stumbling about blindly. The White Fang members turned towards where the shot had come from, but even they were disoriented by the sudden and unexpected darkness.

Blake fired Gambol Shroud again, and Torchwick grunted in pain as the shot struck his Aura. "Sun, the window!" she called out.

"Stop them!" yelled Torchwick.

The monkey Faunus turned towards the stage, behind which there were windows on the second floor. He sprang up to the catwalk in a single bound and was about to crash through when he realized that Blake wasn't with him. He cast a glance over his shoulder and saw her climbing the Atlesian robot. Then he saw a White Fang soldier pointing a rifle at him. He grimaced and threw himself into the window, breaking through it easily.

He continued running away from the factory. A few seconds after he went through the window, he heard a massive crash. Taking a second to look back, he saw that the Atlesian robot had come crashing through the wall and was running after him.

Inside the factory, Torchwick slowly dragged himself back onto his feet, shielding his eyes against the moonlight that came pouring through the giant hole in the wall.

"What happened?" he muttered. Neo waved her scroll in his face in reply. Torchwick grabbed onto her wrist and held it steady enough to read what was on the device.

"What do you mean, she stole the mecha?" he shouted.

He got his answer an instant later when a missile came flying through the hole in the wall. Neo yanked him out of the way just in time to avoid a fiery death. The missile exploded behind him, throwing Faunus off their feet.

Outside, Sun sprang onto the robot's shoulder.

"Blake, is that you?" he called.

"Yeah, it's me," she answered over the mecha's loudspeaker system.

"How are you even piloting that?" Sun cried.

"It's pretty intuitive, at least if you've used stolen Atlas tech before."

Sun decided that now wasn't the time to unpack that statement. He practically jumped out of his skin when Blake fired another missile into the factory.

"That should get the police here pretty quickly, right?" she asked.

"Yeah, I would think so!" Sun shouted in reply.

"Good, then let's go," she answered. Sun had to hang on as the Atlesian robot spun around and began lumbering off into the city.

"Wait, are you taking this?" he yelled to Blake.

"Well I can't let them keep it!" she answered.

"OK, then where are we going to ditch it?" asked Sun.

"Ditch it?"

* * *

General Ironwood strode across the quad of Beacon. The sun was only just rising, but he needed to speak with Professor Ozpin immediately. An apparent falling out between members of the White Fang had revealed a hidden meeting location in a warehouse in Vale. Several members had been arrested before they could flee the scene. The ones that could be convinced to cooperate had told stories of stolen Atlesian military hardware, and a base to the southeast of Vale.

Coming into sight of the school entrance, the general stopped in his tracks, sensing that something was out of place. He slowly turned his head towards the student dormitories, and what he saw there left him speechless for several minutes.

Parked in between two dorm buildings was a prototype Atlesian Paladin with the logo of the White Fang embossed on its arms. Its footprints were visible on the lawn, stretching back towards the road to Vale. The neat arrangement of the footprints made it evident that whoever had piloted the mecha was competent and possibly even trained.

General Ironwood took a deep breath, and then began sprinting towards Ozpin's office.


	47. BOO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween, everyone! This week we got to write anything we wanted, as long as it was spooky! I... don't know exactly what this was. I hope you all like it.

Ren's alarm went off, but he was already awake. It had been another sleepless night for him. The beeping continued, but Ren didn't move. After a few seconds, Pyrrha turned the alarm off, as she had the past two mornings. Ren didn't know if either of his teammates had slept. He couldn't bring himself to care.

Jaune and Pyrrha went about their morning routines with an almost exaggerated care, as if they were afraid of breaking something. Ren knew that he was that something.

When they were finished getting ready, the partners moved towards the door before pausing a moment. Ren could just imagine the uncertain looks they were giving each other.

"Ren?" Pyrrha asked gently. "Do you want to get breakfast?"

"No," he answered bluntly.

"We could bring you something," she offered.

"I'm not hungry," he replied. He'd had only two meals in as many days, but he had no desire to eat.

"Come on, Ren," Jaune said. "You should eat something."

Ren sighed. "Maybe later."

Finally, Pyrrha opened the door to leave.

"Hi," Ren heard Ruby say softly from outside. Any further conversation was cut off by the door closing.

Ren knew that he was being difficult. He knew that Jaune and Pyrrha were burying their own grief for his sake. He knew that he should feel bad about that, but he didn't. He just lay in bed, his mind going in circles, dancing ever closer to thoughts of her while sheer force of will held them back.

Eventually he glanced at the clock, seeing that he needed to get up soon. Jaune, Pyrrha, and he had been excused from classes for the rest of the week, but counseling was mandatory. Professor Goodwitch would come for him if he didn't show up.

Ren slowly dragged himself into a sitting position. He tried desperately to keep his eyes locked on his dresser, but for an instant his will cracked. He looked at her bed.

Tears welled in his eyes, but he blinked them away as quickly as he could. For a moment he thought that he could move on as normal, but it was too late. He needed to give some voice to what he was feeling.

"Never knew a time when you weren't by my side," he whispered. "The one thing I could always count on. Always there for me, you've been my family even when all other hope was gone."

That was when Ren began to process what he was saying. It didn't sound like him. He didn't drop words. And this had almost sounded like singing. Ren never sang.

But these words and the slight melody that accompanied them had come into his mind as if…

As if he had heard them from someone else.

He suddenly wondered if all of the voices that had been going through his mind had been his own.

Ren closed his eyes and listened. He was a very good listener, but it was several seconds before he thought he heard something.

_"But for a while things have seemed so different,"_  a voice whispered, too soft to place.  _"Like it's the same but still brand new. I can't believe it, when did I start to fall for you?"_

"Nora?" Ren asked desperately, standing upright. He scanned the room with his eyes, but there was nothing that the sound could have come from. Then he considered the words again. "Fall for you…"

A realization hit Ren, and he sat back down on his bed with his face in his hands.

"Fall for you," he whispered again. Not like she fell in love with him, but like how she had fallen in battle to save him. This wasn't some message from her; it was just his mind torturing him. It was crazy to think otherwise.

"Have I lost my mind?" he cried.

"Have I just been blind?"

Ren sat bolt upright. There was no mistaking it,  _that_  had been Nora's voice. And it wasn't done yet.

"Never to have seen you might be everything I need, everything I dreamed. All along has it been right in front of me?"

The pace of the words was picking up, and the melody was becoming clearer, but Ren still couldn't place where it was coming from.

"We've been together for a long, long, long, long time. I never thought that you and I could be a thing. I can't believe it. This is happening!"

Tears came to Ren's eyes as he remembered her cheering those words at the Vytal Festival Dance. He was spinning in circles now, trying to find the voice, but it always seemed to be right behind him.

"I think 'Oh woah, what am I to do?' I didn't know that I would end up haunting you!"

Finally the voice seemed to settle, and when Ren turned to face it he found himself looking at Nora's bed again.

"And what to do right now, I haven't got a clue!"

He drew closer, the singing now clearly coming from under the sheets.

"I just act spooky, and when I want to say I love you I say…"

Ren leaned over the bed, but then threw himself back as a spectral white figure came flying out from the covers. It was hazy and transparent, but the apparition was clearly a girl with short hair and an adorable little nose. As the figure rose out of the bed, it thrust a single finger out towards Ren's nose and shrieked one more word.

"BOO!"


	48. This Won't Be the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt this week was "A member of Team RWBY finds herself shunted into a reverse-morality alternate universe." This one was silly even for me.

Ruby slowly opened her eyes to the morning sun coming through the window of her room in the house in Mistral. She slowly sat up and stretched, yawning loudly. She was sore all over. The battle last night had been exhausting, but Team RWBY was now reunited, and they had the Relic of Knowledge.

Ruby shuffled downstairs to find that her teammates were already awake and sitting around the table in the living room. They were all wearing smiles, clearly as happy as she was to be back together. Even Yang looked like she was glad to have Blake back, her earlier anger towards the Faunus apparently gone.

Ruby was about to greet them when she saw something that made her jaw drop. Yang's arm was draped over the armrest next to her. Yang's  _right_  arm.

"Yang!" cried Ruby.

Yang turned to her sister. "Hey Ruby," she greeted. "What's with the yelling?"

"Your arm!" Ruby yelled. When her teammates just stared at her, she continued. "It's back!"

"Yeah," Yang answered after a second. "Of course it is."

"How?" Ruby asked.

The other members of Team RWBY glanced at one another.

"Are you feeling alright?" asked Weiss. Ruby just continued staring at her sister's restored arm.

"Ruby, my arm's been back for a while," Yang began gently. "Don't you remember at Beacon? When Adam reattached it?"

Ruby felt like the room was spinning. That didn't make any sense. Adam was the one who cut off Yang's arm, and now she was saying that he reattached it?

"Ugh, Adam," Blake muttered. "Such a little bitch. I swear, when we were dating I had to slap him around to get him to do anything."

"Stupid Faunus," added Weiss. "Can you believe my dad thinks that those animals deserve equal pay? Are we going to start paying horses next? Oh, but not you Blake, you're one of the good ones."

Blake waved her off. "When you're talking about somebody like Adam, I get what you mean."

Ruby just stared in shock as her teammates spat on everything they believed in. She'd have thought this was all some kind of sick prank, but there was no explaining Yang's arm.

"No need to worry!" Nora declared as she stomped down the stairs from her room. "If that animal shows his face again, I'll break his arms! Now let's get some waffles cooking, Ren!"

"Ugh, I hate making waffles," Ren groaned as he entered the living room.

"Shut up and get in the kitchen," Nora growled, grabbing Ren's arm and shoving him towards the stove.

_This can't be real._

"Come on, Nora, lay off him a bit," said an unfamiliar voice. Ruby turned towards it and found a tall, blue-haired girl who looked like she was the same age as Weiss, Yang, and the others.

"Who are you?" asked Ruby.

The girl blinked at Ruby, a surprised and slightly hurt expression on her face.

"It's me, June," she answered. "From Team RNJR?"

"What happened to Jaune?" Ruby demanded.

"Who's Jaune?" June asked in reply.

For a moment, no one spoke. Then Yang snapped her fingers loudly.

"I know, that blond guy who got rejected from Beacon! Man, if my grades were as bad as I heard his were, I probably would have given the school fake transcripts. What would that loser be doing here?"

"Could you all keep it down?" asked a voice Ruby had only heard once before. She turned around and was stunned to see Raven coming from the hallway where Qrow and Oscar's rooms were. "Selma is still sleeping. The battle really took a lot out of her."

"Who's Selma?" Ruby asked before she could even fully process what she was seeing and hearing.

Everyone in the room stared at her like she'd gone crazy.

"I think it might have taken a lot out of Ruby too," Blake suggested after a moment. "Do you want to go lie down?"

"I feel fine," Ruby answered. "I just want to know who Selma is."

"Um, the farm girl?" Yang answered. "The one that Professor Salem reincarnated into?"

Ruby lowered her head, trying to make sense of everything going on around her.

_It's like I'm in some kind of alternate universe._

As crazy as that sounded, Ruby couldn't think of another explanation. There was no way that any of this would make sense in her world.

As Ruby pondered, the others continued discussing her apparent memory loss.

"Maybe it has to do with her eyes," Yang suggested.

"Yeah, that weird light that came out of them might have messed with her head," added June.

"That could be," confirmed Raven. "The silver eyes are a powerful weapon against cookies, but they come with some harsh side effects."

Ruby was about to insist that she felt fine, when a more pressing thought came to her.

"Wait, did you say a weapon against cookies?"

Again, the whole room stared at Ruby.

"Yes," Raven answered after a moment. "I told you this after you used them the first time. It's said that the silver eyed warriors could defeat a cookie with a single glance."

"Defeat a  _cookie_?" Ruby repeated dumbly.

"Yeah, a cookie," Yang confirmed. "You know, the monstrous baked goods that we're all trained to fight?"

It took a while for Ruby to process that. When she finally did, she was left with the most disturbing conclusion possible.

_Cookies are evil here._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I guess in this universe Grimm are delicious treats?


End file.
